Mirrored
by Crimson Elemental Alchemist
Summary: Two sisters-fraternal twins-walk home from school, one day. Instead of arriving in their Victorian house on 34th street, like usual, they end up at a cute little cafe. A cafe that one sister recognizes . . . .KishuXoc PaiXoc RyoXoc ZakuroXoc.
1. A Walk in the Rain

_Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew_._

_Crimson: This is a story about two girls from our world (one who is a big-time fan of _Tokyo Mew Mew_) who drop in at Café Mew Mew and get in a whole lot of trouble while they're at it. And the worst/best part is: they're sisters!_

_By the way, this will be a KishuxOc and RyoxOcxPai (I'm not sure about that second OC, yet). READ ON!_

* * *

**Chapter One–**

**A Walk in the Rain**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

"Come on, Jen!" Fate cried to her twin, pulling her along behind her as the pair hurried through the hallways of the abandoned school. The arm of the girl she tugged impatiently at went as limp as cooked spaghetti. Fate rolled her eyes and huffed in displeasure at her sister, her white bangs falling haphazardly into deep-blue eyes. "What's the hold up?" she finally demanded, halting in the middle of their school. One pale hand rested on her hip while the other still clutched at her sister's arm.

"It's so creepy," the black-haired girl whined, clenching her green eyes shut as if as if not seeing the dark, empty hallways would make it all better. "You know that serial nutcase is still at large, right, Fa-chan?" Her left hand squeezed the strap of her white backpack even tighter as gruesome images of two girls murdered on the most unholy of days flashed through her head. "I can already see the headlines: A beautiful woman and her twin sister killed on Friday the thirteenth!" She gave a little squeak at the end of her premonition, successfully scaring herself in the process.

Fate simply rolled her eyes at the younger of the two, already exhausted with her antics. "First of all, don't _ever_ call me _'Fa-chan'_," the white-haired girl demanded, anger simmering at the hated nickname that had followed her from kindergarten. "Second, that 'serial nutcase', as you call him, just shot a deer out of season and got fined for it!" She shook her head at her sibling's over-exaggerations. "And last but not least, what's wrong with today? We were born on the 13th!" Fate glared daggers at her twin.

_'If looks could kill . . . .' _Jen thought silently to herself. She pulled her hand from Fate's grasp and raised it in front of her in a pathetic gesture of surrender. "Sorry! Sorry!" she hurriedly said, trying to curb her touchy twin's irritation with her. Something must have really ticked Fate off earlier to get her this aggravated. Usually her "older" sister had the patience of a saint and then some . . . .

"You really should lay off those mystery novels for a while, Jen," Fate sighed. She turned around and started walking away, knowing that her faithful sister would follow her. As expected, she did, but not before giving a dramatic screech that her "protector" was abandoning her . . . .

* * *

"Ano . . . ." Jen muttered, reverting to Japanese for a bit. Her green eyes grew puzzled as she continued to walk beside her sister, watching unfamiliar sights pass them by. "This doesn't look right at all, oneechan," she observed while she hefted her soggy backpack higher onto her shoulder.

Fate ignored her, too busy with wringing out her damp hair as she grumbled about the sudden rain that had poured down on them the second they had stepped out of the school building. "Where in the seven hells did all that rain come from?" she growled out between clenched teeth. "And where on earth did it go?" she added, wondering how such a downpour could disappear so suddenly. Something prickled at her consciousness and the hairs on the nape of her neck stood up. Fate lay a protective hand over her black schoolbag hanging at her side as she scrutinized her surroundings.

"Hey! Look at that!" Jen exclaimed in her ear.

Fate jumped and swung herself around, preparing to fight some unknown entity. What she saw, however, wasn't some crooked-looking rapist or murderer but rather a cute little pastry shop. She turned to her sister, frowning at the excited look on the dark-haired girl's face even after she bonked her on the head.

"Ow!" Jen cried as she rubbed the tender spot on her head. "What was that for?" she demanded of her twin, giving her a questioning glance.

"Baka," Fate grumbled in Japanese.

Fate sighed in exasperation before walking off in the direction of the restaurant. Jen followed after her silently, not daring to try her sibling's patience any more. As they came closer to the little shop, Fate could feel eyes burning a hole in her back. She turned her head slightly to the side, catching sight of her sister walking beside her. Jen had her green eyes focused on their current destination so it wasn't her gaze she felt. Fate looked ahead, once again, but her attention was divided now. She could feel someone's presence somewhere nearby, but she couldn't pinpoint them. Frustration gnawed savagely at her as she tried in vain to figure the location of the stalker. And it wasn't until she ran headlong into someone that she realized that she had been completely absorbed in her thoughts.

"Eep!" a shockingly-familiar voice registered in Fate's ears as she fell back onto her rear. She let out a cry of pain as the concrete of the sidewalk jarred her fragile body. Through the tears that had started to form in her blue eyes, Fate checked to see if the girl she had accidentally bumped into was alright. Her eyes widened in shock at what she saw. Green hair, done up in two thin braids, framed a heart-shaped face. Eyes–a lighter shade of blue than Fate's own–looked down at her in concern. She wore a frilly, green dress with a white apron and something white sat in her odd-colored hair.

_'Odd-colored hair?'_ Fate thought half-heartedly to herself. _'Like I should be talking . . . .'_ She brushed her own strangely-colored hair away from her face as she pushed herself up into a standing position. Jen fluttered around her, far more worried than the green-haired girl looked. Fate practically had to shake her off.

"Oh! I'm so sorry!" the stranger exclaimed, squinting at them. "I didn't see you there! Are you okay?" She tried to move towards them, but she stumbled and would have fallen if Jen hadn't caught her.

"It may be better to ask if _you_ are okay?" Jen giggled, a sweatdrop rolling down the back of her head. Fate's eyes widened marginally, seeing that familiar drop of water on her oblivious sister. She almost giggled at the insanity of it all. _Almost_.

A glint to her right caught Fate's attention. She bent down while Jen and the mystery-girl were preoccupied. A pair of wire-framed glasses rested innocently on the walkway into the café. Fate gently picked them up, checking them to make sure they hadn't been broken before turning to the green-haired girl.

"Here. I believe these are yours, miss," Fate handed the waitress her precious glasses. She'd just play ignorant for the benefit of her twin.

The girl took them with a grateful smile and several words of thanks before pushing them up the bridge of her nose. "Ah! Much better!" she exclaimed. Her cheeks went red when Jen busted up laughing and Fate giggled. "Oh! Um, I'm really sorry about running into you earlier, miss. I guess my head was in the clouds and I didn't see you." She probably would have gone even further with her apology if Fate hadn't held up her hand to stop her.

"It's perfectly alright," she reassured the girl. "I was daydreaming myself. Anyway, my name's Fate and this is my twin, Jen," she introduced, motioning first to herself and then to her sister who gave the girl a little wave. "We were just wondering if we could get some food here . . . ." she trailed off when she noticed the girl's blue eyes had traveled to her hair. Her gut clenched at that.

"Er . . . So we can eat here, right?" Jen intercepted before Fate could do anything. "I mean this _is_ a restaurant, ne?" She had completely forgotten about their previous objective: finding out where the hell they were. Instead, she focused on getting the poor girl out of a potentially-dangerous situation with her sister concerning her white hair.

"Oh, of course," the waitress replied, picking up the broom she must have been using before the collision. "Right this way!" she greeted properly, holding the door open for the sisters.

"Thank you." Fate and Jen said simultaneously. They glanced at each other and smiled. Jen noticed the waitress smiling, too.

"By the way, what's your name?" Jen asked the green-haired girl, walking by her side. Fate strayed behind the pair, but her ears prickled for the answer.

"It's Retasu," she replied, grinning. "You can call me 'Lettuce', if you want. My friends do." She stopped at one of the booths that was situated next to a large window. "Here's your table. I'll ask one of the girls to bring out your drinks and menus. What would you like to drink?" Her smiling was getting contagious, even if it was a pretty shy smile. Jen was grinning like an idiot and even bobbing up and down in her seat. Even Fate had a small smile on her face.

"Strawberry milkshake!" Jen ordered immediately. Fate glared at her, not wanting her to get any more hyper than she already was. Jen just ignored her.

"Just water, please," Fate said, glancing out the window. The prickling sensation hadn't gone away yet. Strangely enough, it had actually gotten _stronger_. The one thing she knew, however, was that the presence was somewhere _outside_ the café. At least for now . . . .

"–ate," Jen's voice finally registered in her brain. Fate turned her attention to her sister, looking surprised that she had zoned out again. The second time that day. What was wrong with her?

"I _said_: Where do you think we are?" Jen repeated her question for what seemed like the tenth time. "This place sure looks familiar, but I can't quite place it . . . ." She trailed off as she thought harder about it. Fate had to hold a hand over her mouth in an effort not to laugh.

The effort failed.

"Uh, Fate?" Jen questioned worriedly, watching her sister bust up laughing in the middle of a café. She didn't usually do that in public. "What's so funny?" Another sweatdrop ran down her head. This only made Fate laugh harder.

It took about ten minutes, but Fate had finally laughed herself out enough to speak coherently. She fixed her white, off-the-shoulder shirt and subconsciously rubbed the pentagram she wore around her neck. She let out a grateful sigh, feeling much better now than she had all day. Blowing a stray strand of hair out of her face, Fate leaned back in her seat. She had finally decided to tell her twin everything.

* * *

"WHAT?!" Jen practically screamed. Everyone in the pastry shop stopped whatever they were doing and stared at the sisters. Even the waitresses had their eyes on them. Actually, the waitresses (along with the shop's owner and the shop's cook) had been watching the pair for the past half hour. While serving them their food and drinks, Ichigo could have sworn that she had heard Kishu's name coming from the white-haired girl's lips along with a few other choice words (cat ears, wolf, Earth's guardians, etc).

Jen lowered her voice to that of a whisper. "You mean, that we are _inside_ of _Tokyo Mew Mew?_!" She had stretched across the table so she could look directly into Fate's eyes and had managed a distance of three inches between them. "That same _TMM_ that you love so much?" At Fate's nod, Jen fainted . . . Yes, she literally _fainted_. Right there, in the middle of a restaurant. Heck, in the middle of her meal! It wasn't like her to not finish her plate, first . . . .

"Jen?" Fate poked her twin in the forehead but the girl didn't budge. She sighed, sitting back in her seat. "Drama queen," she muttered under her breath. Glancing out the window, Fate saw a flash of brown and green. She perked up in her seat, finally realizing whose eyes had been on her for the past hour. She glanced back at her still down-and-out sister before getting up from her seat and discreetly heading outdoors. She purposefully left her bag behind to make it look like all she needed was a breath of fresh air. Which wouldn't be all that hard for her to pull off–she practically possessed the body strength of a baby bird. Her health wasn't exactly the greatest.

The afternoon sun glared harshly at Fate as she passed through the shop's doors. She held up a slender hand in front of her face as a poor substitute for sunglasses (which she had inconveniently left in her bag), her blue eyes already beginning to water. Spotting a shadowy oasis proffered by a lone tree a short walk to her left, Fate high-tailed it over. At this point, she really didn't care if she looked like an idiot. Plopping down on the thankfully-cool grass beneath the tree, Fate let her eyes roam over the empty grounds of Café Mew Mew.

"Why are you watching me?" Fate asked the alien sitting in the tree. She didn't even bother to glance up at him, already knowing who he was.

Kishu came down from his hiding place, sitting cross-legged in front of Fate (floating in the air, of course). His golden eyes locked with her blue ones. Fate just stared at him, her heart speeding up and a blush starting to form on her cheeks. He was just sitting there, for crying out loud! It wasn't as if he was touching her or kissing her! Fate shook her head to get rid of those intruding thoughts, hoping the telepathic Kishu hadn't heard or seen anything embarrassing in her mind at that moment. After noticing the green-haired boy's smirk, Fate would have to say that he had. She blushed a deep scarlet.

"Well, aren't you a beautiful flower," Kishu teased, leaning close to Fate. His hot breath fanned her white skin, producing a rosy blush across her cheeks. He smirked at the nervous and embarrassed expression on his newest toy's face. Kishu had been following the girl after spotting her an hour earlier during his daily planning of making Ichigo his. At the sight of her pure-white hair, marble-white skin, and penetrating blue eyes, Kishu decided he'd have more fun playing with this girl than a love-struck Ichigo. And judging by the thoughts flitting through her mind, he was right.

He caught Fate's chin between his thumb and forefinger, leaning even closer to the girl. He watched her blue eyes widen in surprise and felt a satisfaction that he never got from Ichigo fill him.

"You're going to be mine, Hana-chan," Kishu predicted, pulling her into a long kiss.


	2. Seeing the Other Side

_Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew_._

_Crimson: My OCs definitely took on a life of their own. They're both completely different than what I had first intended. Fate's not very likeable, at first, it seems ^^:: Woops . . . ._

_Fate: And whose fault could that be? Hmm, I wonder . . . . **glares at Crimson**_

_Crimson: -_-;;_

_Jen: Um, I have a question?_

_Crimson: You're awake?_

_Jen: **blushes** Who are Pai and Ryo? And which one do I end up with?_

_Crimson: Don't know yet. I'm leaning towards Pai, but you'll have to see._

_Jen: Who is Pai? Tell me, please!_

_Crimson: Read on!_

_

* * *

_

**Chapter Two­–**

**Seeing the Other Side**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

"Have you seen my sister, by any chance?" Jen asked Lettuce who had just come out from the kitchen to wash off tables. It had scared the wits out of Jen when she had woken up to find herself alone. Fate hardly ever wandered off on her own, especially when night was about to fall (she had been unconscious for a few hours).

"Oh, you're finally awake," Lettuce remarked which made Jen blush in embarrassment. "I'm sorry, but I haven't seen your sister for a while now." She watched Jen start to panic with a worried expression. Things like "Oh no, what am I going to do?!" and "Where am I going to spend the night?!" spilled from the black-haired girl's lips. Lettuce couldn't very well turn away from a person in need. "My friends and I can help you look for her in a few minutes. We're about to close up so could you please wait for a few more moments?" Lettuce gave her a small, reassuring smile that miraculously calmed Jen down.

"Of course," Jen sighed out in relief. She went back to the booth and gathered up both her and her sister's bags. That was another thing that had frightened her: Fate never left her bag behind. She always had to have her precious belongings in sight at all times.

"Where could you be, onee-chan?" Jen wondered aloud, trying to connect with her sister via that twin mind sync thing that she always heard about while growing up. She kept trying it while she waited for the mew mews to finish closing up the pastry shop.

* * *

"Mmmm," Fate protested in her sleep, trying to swat the hand pushing her shoulder away. What she didn't expect was that hand to grab hold of her own. Her sleep-drugged mind, not fully understanding the situation, decided that the warmth of those hands was desirable. She pulled them into her body in an effort to draw in more heat for her cold skin.

"My silly Hana-chan," a male's voice registered in her head followed soon after by a tender kiss to her temple. She felt someone lie down next to her and pull her into a tight embrace. Finding the warmth oddly soothing, Fate snuggled further into the source of it. Her dreams wrapped comfortingly around her as she listened to the heartbeat of the one whose arms she lay in.

* * *

"It's too dangerous," Ryo Shirogane repeated himself for what seemed the hundredth time. He had been arguing with the girl, Jen for a good fifteen minutes now. Stubbornness seemed to run in her blood for she had yet to give up. He sighed in exasperation, quickly losing his patience as Jen opened her mouth to rebuke his command _again_.

"But my sister–" she started, anger simmering in her green eyes. An uncharacteristic growl escaped her when Ryo cut her off for the umpteenth time.

"Is, no doubt, a clever girl who can take care of herself," Ryo interjected, arms crossed. "You can look for her in the morning, but you need your sleep," he reasoned logically. "You already look half-dead," he added with a smirk, taking in Jen's drooping eyelids, disheveled black hair, and her sagging posture. Ryo had no intention of letting this girl go wandering around all night long in the middle of a city where she was very likely to get kidnapped.

When Jen looked like she was going to start complaining again, Zakuro cut her off. "It is a good idea to get your sleep, you know," she told the girl. The violet-haired woman didn't usually get mixed up in someone else's affairs, but the young teenager seemed to have quite a lot on her plate right now so she couldn't help but sympathize with her. "We can all help you look for your sister tomorrow. If you give me a description of what she looks like, then I can even get my people to keep an eye out for her." Zakuro reassured Jen with a gentle smile.

Jen stared at the taller girl, wondering who exactly these "people" were that Zakuro had. She thought that only famous or rich people had people. Well, maybe Zakuro belonged to one or both of those groups. "Well . . . ." she trailed off, not sure about the idea of just giving up on her twin. A feeling of guilt crept up on her, and she shook her head roughly for even thinking of abandoning Fate. "Nuh-uh!" Jen cried, tears forming in her green eyes. "I can't leave my sister alone out there!"

Everyone sighed, but they knew what the girl must be going through. Letting someone you care about spend a night God-only-knows-where all alone, was not something that would go over well.

"Well, how 'bout the five of us search for her tonight while you go to bed," Ichigo suggested but trailed off when she saw Jen shaking her head at her. The red-head sighed.

"Alright, fine," Ryo finally caved. He ran a hand through his blonde hair, exhausted of any arguments to keep the girl indoors tonight. "You and the girls can look for your twin for one hour and _only_ one hour," he emphasized the "one hour" part. "When that hour's up, you come back here and go to bed." He pointed to the stairs where the guests' bedrooms were located. He had told Jen earlier that she could stay there for the time being as long as she worked for her room and board. Ryo couldn't believe that he was actually bending to the will of a girl who was younger than him. The mews must be rubbing off on him . . . .

"Oh, thank you!" Jen expressed her gratitude with a hug to Ryo's middle. A light pink blush spread over his cheeks at the sudden contact, but it didn't linger for very long. Jen bounced off him and grabbed Fate's side bag, knowing that her twin would want to have her things the second they found her. She had already tossed her own backpack onto the bed in her temporary room. "Let's go!" she called to the others, already marching out the door. An air of triumph gathered around her as she headed out in search of her sister.

"Well, that was interesting," Mint remarked, staring after Jen. She turned her light-brown eyes to her friends. "After the hour's up, I take it that we're going to continue the search in our mew forms?" she asked knowingly. Nothing got past her. At the others' nods, she walked out of the café with an air of elegance. The other mews followed her soon after.

"Things are certainly getting interesting," Keiichiro noted, coming out of the kitchen where he had been eavesdropping on the conversation. Ryo huffed at his remark.

"This sister of hers knew something about the aliens," Ryo stated seriously. "And Masha even sensed something peculiar about her DNA." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, mulling things over in his mind. "I'm going down to the lab," he told Keiichiro, walking past him to the basement.

"Do you want any supper brought down?" Keiichiro called out after him but received no answer.

* * *

"Come on, wake up," someone's voice rang in her ears. Fate slowly came to but still tried her best to ignore the call. "You can't sleep all day, you know." Oh, she wanted so badly to say that she could . . . .

"Jeez, Kishu," another voice, a young boy by the sound of it, declared, "that girl sleeps more than that old cat does."

Fate's ears pricked up at that. "That old cat"? Did he mean Ichigo? Did that mean Taruto was speaking? Sleep still had hold of her so Fate's brain still couldn't think things through very well. It was a stroke of luck that she could come up with that much.

"Shut up, Taruto," the first voice (which Fate had now marked as Kishu's) chided.

"What were you thinking," Pai's voice entered the conversation, "bringing a human here?"

Fate knew he was talking about her and that "here" must be their dimension or their ship. When had Kishu teleported her? And how had she lost consciousness? The last thing she remembered was that kiss . . . .

"You are fortunate that this human has some unusual DNA. She is of great interest to us," Pai continued. Fate briefly wondered what he was talking about, but was jerked out of her musings when she felt a tug on her long hair.

"Ow!" she cried without thinking, snapping into a sitting position. The first thing she saw was Kishu's surprised face scant inches away from her own. She blushed, looking away from him in embarrassment. That was when she caught sight of Taruto clutching a handful of her white hair. She scowled at the young alien and swiped a hand at him which made him let go of her and fly back.

"Yikes! You have a bad temper when you wake up!" the boy cried, golden eyes glaring at the teenage girl. Fate just glared back, refusing to back down.

A gentle but firm hold on her chin pulled her gaze away from the mischievous Taruto and to the amused face of Kishu. "Ignore the twerp," he advised, smiling at her which revealed his sharp canines. Fate simply nodded at him, too shocked to see him to trust her voice.

"You are ill, aren't you?" Pai asked her, making Fate switch her attention from Kishu to him. "Sunlight hurts your eyes and your body is weak," he guessed, watching her carefully with calculating eyes.

"Yeah. So?" Fate answered a tad rudely, not liking to admit her weaknesses to anybody. Still, it would be pretty hard to lie to a group of aliens who possessed the technology to discover if she was lying or not. In fact, she had a feeling that they had run tests on her already.

"It may be a sign of something," Pai explained. "Although, I'll need to run more tests to figure out what exactly." He walked back to his podium and started typing things into what Fate would have to guess was a computer of some sort.

"So that means she stays?" Kishu asked his comrade hopefully, clinging to his "Hana-chan" tightly. Fate blushed at this.

"Yes," Pai answered shortly, not bothering to look up from his work.

"Yay!" Kishu cried happily like a child getting his favorite toy. Fate guessed that was exactly what she was to him. He hugged her even tighter and kissed her full on the lips.

"Yuck!" Taruto complained, averting his eyes from the lovey-dovey couple. "Get a room, Kishu!"

That was obviously the wrong thing to say because Kishu suddenly had a sinister gleam in his eyes. Fate tried not to blush but turned as red as a tomato nonetheless. She knew, she just _knew_, what bad ideas were traipsing through the guy's head at that moment. Damn Taruto for that premature comment of his . . . .

"That's not a bad idea," Kishu remarked romantically, breathing into Fate's ear. Fate shivered at the feeling of his breath running down her neck. "You can sleep with me." Fate was sure that he meant sleep in his room, but it came out totally different. At Kishu's grin, the girl was sure that he had heard her thoughts.

"No," Pai interrupted coldly. "The girl will sleep in the guest chambers." Fate gave him a look of gratitude, which he acknowledged with a slight nod of his head.

"Guest chambers?" Kishu repeated, kind of put-down. "Since when do we have guest chambers?" He had hoped to get the girl into bed with him. Not in the dirty way that his girl's mind apparently worked in, though. He just wanted her to be by his side at all times.

"Since now," Pai retorted. "I've converted the extra laboratory into a bedroom. Complete with a bathroom," he added, figuring that the girl would be happy with her own shower and private quarters. He was obviously right when he saw the sudden gleam in her blue eyes.

"Hmph!" Kishu huffed, frowning at the thought of his Hana-chan sleeping without him. He didn't like the idea of her being so far from him either. The laboratory was on the other side of the ship from his room. In fact, it was right next to Pai's and Taruto's rooms!

(A/N: Remember, Pai and Taruto came _after_ Kishu, so it makes sense that their rooms could be a ways away from his).

"Hey!" Taruto suddenly called out, cutting into the discussion of the sleeping arrangements. He floated down to the ground between them, a scowl on his face. "Don't we need to get going?" he asked Pai with his hands on his hips.

Fate looked from him to Pai and, finally, to Kishu. All three had solemn expressions on their faces. She decided it was about to time to voice her opinions. After all, if she was going to stay with them, then they'd have to get used to her nosiness, right? "Where are you going to go?" she asked, watching them with her blue eyes as she waited for one of them to answer.

"To find mew aqua," Pai answered, surprising the other two. He usually had a very serious nature about him and never told anyone outside of their race about their mission. Pai, however, didn't see the point of keeping secrets from the girl. She now had a place among them so she was going to start seeing things and start questioning them. And they may need her to trust them.

"Am I going with you?" Fate asked hopefully, eyes sparkling.

"Of course!" Kishu grinned at her and was surprised when Fate rewarded him with a hug. He had to steady himself with one arm behind him while the other held the girl in place to his chest. A blush formed on his cheeks at how forward his new toy had proved to be.

"Thank you!" Fate cried, knowing that it was nightfall thanks to that internal clock of hers. It was even a full moon tonight which meant a great deal to her considering her Wiccan roots.

Pai and Taruto stared at the two. Pai with a slightly-surprised look, and Taruto with disbelief and curiosity. Taruto was the first to shake it off.

"Uh, what's your name, anyway?" the young alien asked, walking towards her. He really didn't want to have to call her "Hana-chan", like Kishu. It would just be too weird. Fate looked up at him from her place in Kishu's arms.

"It's 'Fate'," she answered him softly. It earned her smiles from all three aliens. She looked at them oddly, pulling away from Kishu reluctantly to give him a questioning glance. He waved his hand in front of his face in a gesture of dismissal.

"Oh, it's nothing really. It just really suits you, is all, Fate-chan," Kishu explained, grinning at her. He liked her real name much better than his nickname for her.

"Cool name," Taruto remarked as he brought his hands behind his head. "I like it, too." The boy never thought a human would have a name like that. It was odd, sure, but the fact that she had managed to come onto their ship (granted, Kishu had helped with that), only for them to discover that she had some unique DNA . . . . Well, it was like destiny had led her here.

Pai simply smiled a mysterious smile, thinking along the same lines as Taruto. "Let's go," he commanded, disappearing into thin air. Taruto quickly followed.

"Okay, my Fate-chan," Kishu said, hugging the girl tightly to him. "Hold on," he instructed as he, too, teleported away with Fate clinging to his front.

The next thing she knew, Fate was floating–actually _floating_–in a realm of darkness. And everything was delightfully cool. Well, the air, at least, was cool. The body she clung to was definitely not.

The moment of floating in an infinite space passed all-too-quickly for Fate as she and Kishu appeared over the city of Tokyo. The night air passed through her long, white hair as the four of them floated in the starry sky. She craned her neck so she could look below them at the bright city lights.

"_Sugoi_," Fate breathed out in awe, watching the beautiful scene below her. In the dead of night, the city looked so breathtaking. Her death-hold around Kishu's neck loosened considerably as she strained in his arms to get a better glimpse of the lights below. A yelp passed her lips as she suddenly slipped downwards. She squeezed her eyes shut and even wrapped her legs around Kishu's middle when the stark realization of gravity caught up with her.

"Heh. Careful there, Fate-chan," Kishu warned, amused with the girl's curiosity and fearlessness (at least to begin with). The feeling of her legs clutching his middle was actually comforting to him. He liked it. A lot.

"Remember: you can't fly!" Taruto reprimanded, floating lazily beside the pair. He could have sworn Fate had muttered "show-off" at him.

"The zoo is a likely location for the mew aqua," Pai informed his companions, ignoring the commotion they made.

"Well, then," Taruto began, "what are we waiting for?" With that, he zoomed downwards, heading towards one of the darker spots in the city. Kishu and Pai followed, while Fate briefly wondered how they could possibly know where the zoo was at. All the buildings and roads looked alike to her from all the way up here. This was going to take some getting used to, that's for sure. Wait a sec. "Get used to"? It's not like Kishu would take her flying whenever she wanted. Heck, he may never do it again.

"'Course I will, Fate-chan," Kishu whispered into her ear. Fate jumped, forgetting momentarily that he could read minds. "I'll take you flying every night, if you want," he promised, smirking at her. She blushed.

"What are you two talking about?" Pai asked suspiciously. He had strayed back to stay even with Kishu and Fate.

"Nothing!" Kishu piped up, smiling innocently. Fate stifled a giggle at his angelic appearance.

Pai simply narrowed his eyes, but said nothing.

They finally arrived at the zoo, much to Fate's dismay. She had been enjoying the flight down. But, now, it was time to disembark from her comfortable position in Kishu's hold. Scarlet colored her cheeks as she finally took notice of her exact position on the alien. Fate jumped off Kishu the second he touched the ground, looking at anywhere but him in embarrassment. She couldn't believe that she had actually wrapped her legs around him! Oh, man . . . .

"Aw! How cute," Kishu cried. "You're embarrassed!" He seemed overjoyed with that fact. So overjoyed, in fact, that he jumped on her and she fell backwards.

Fate closed her eyes tightly, waiting for the jarring impact to the ground but it never came. Opening her blue eyes, Fate looked up and saw Kishu's face hovering over her. He had caught her in his arms before she could hit the dirt. "Uh, thanks," she said, regaining her feet.

"No prob," Kishu replied as he helped her up.

"Okay. Okay," Taruto interrupted, stepping between them. "Quit all the lovey-dovey nonsense and let's start searching." He marched past them before leaping back into the air and disappearing over the wolves' enclosure.

Fate smiled at the kid's antics. She thought about him and Pudding, wondering if they'd ever get together.

"Oh, well," Kishu rubbed the back of his head. "Looks like I've got to get to work. Wanna wait here for me? I promise I'll be back soon," he ended his sentence with a gentle kiss to Fate's lips.

"S-sure," she answered with a stutter. "I'll wait." A true smile lit up her face at the prospect of Kishu coming for _her_. She watched as Kishu and Pai swept into the night sky and headed off in the direction that Taruto had taken. Five minutes hadn't even passed by before a pitiful whine came from her right. Looking in that direction, Fate noticed the golden eyes of a wolf shining out at her from the darkness. Her head cocked to the side in curiosity.

"What's wrong, pup?" she asked the wolf which wasn't quite full-grown yet. She ventured closer carefully so as not to upset the animal. The thought about why the wolf wasn't inside the enclosure never even occurred to her, especially when she saw the dark splotch of blood on the pup's back. "Oh, no!" she exclaimed softly, throwing caution to the wind as she rushed over to the wolf's side. She vaguely took notice of the snow-white coat that matched her own hair as she took in the ghastly wound. "This is bad," she whispered to herself, resting her hands on the pup's head. The wolf pulled its ears back, but didn't growl like it should have. Fate smiled gently at him, reassuring him with an ear rub. "Don't worry, Little One," she leaned down and whispered into his ear. "I can help you."

The blood was slick under fingers, but Fate ignored the slimy feeling and focused, instead, on locating the wound. At a pained yelp from the wolf, she stopped her prodding and decided that she had discovered the injury. "A bite . . ." she mumbled aloud. Her eyes narrowed. "Another wolf did this to you?" Fate gave the wolf pen a pensive glance before returning her attention to the main problem at hand. "Just relax," she told the wolf, holding her pale hands over the wound and shutting her eyes. She turned her thoughts inward. A familiar blue light washed over the back of her eyelids and she reached out with her mind to grab a few strands of it. A feeling–like cool water–immediately ran down her arms and out her hands. Fate could feel the pain that the wolf was feeling recede as the ethereal light entered the wound. She let a few seconds pass by before she stopped the flow and opened her eyes.

The wolf stood in front of her, watching her with his yellow eyes. Fate smiled at him, seeing that the blood had disappeared along with the serious injury. The pup even came up to her and began licking her face in gratitude. She laughed at that, bringing her slender arms up to hug him around his thick-furred neck.

"Calm down! You're welcome, already! Calm down!" she giggled as the wolf reluctantly obeyed her. A tired sigh escaped Fate. She felt drained of most of her physical strength (which she didn't have much to begin with).

"Where's my sister?!" a sudden cry rose into the night, reaching Fate's ears.

Fate whipped her head around, white hair flying around her body as she leapt to her feet. The wolf perked up also. "Imouto-chan?" she asked to the stars. Where had that yell come from? She glanced at the white wolf standing loyally next to her. "Could you show me the way?" she asked him, eyes pleading with the pup.

A moment of silence passed by before the wolf broke the staring contest first and leapt in the direction the aliens had taken. Fate followed after quickly, having difficulty in keeping up with the speed of the pup.

"Wait up!" she called after him.

* * *

"Where's my sister?!" Jen demanded, glaring at three aliens that had suddenly appeared in front of them. She didn't even bother to ask what aliens were doing in the middle of a zoo in the first place or why the five girls she was with had suddenly transformed into half-animals (A/N: she doesn't watch _Tokyo Mew Mew_, so she doesn't know about all their secrets. And she only half-listened to her sister when she was telling Jen everything . . . .).

"Well, who's your sister and I'll think about telling ya!" Taruto mocked, sitting cross-legged in the air. He had a huge grin plastered on his face, but his eyes weren't focused on Jen. Instead, Taruto kept his gaze steady on Pudding who looked up at him with a puppy-dog look on her face. _'She looks so cute today,'_ he thought to himself.

"You look a lot like my new toy," Kishu thought aloud, rubbing his chin in contemplation. His golden eyes looked the strange girl up and down, taking in the similar body build and face structure. In many ways, she resembled Fate except Fate had waist-length white hair and deep-blue eyes, and this girl had jet-black hair and sparkling, green eyes.

"New toy?" Ichigo repeated, a baffled look on her face. Her cat ears perked up from her bubblegum-pink hair. "Does that mean you're over me?" she shouted up at him, hopefully. Her pink eyes glittered at that prospect. _'No more worrying about when Kishu, the stalker will pop up! I can go on dates with Aoyama-kun with no worries! Nya!' _

"Sure does, Ichigo," Kishu replied with a sneer. Now that he wasn't hung up on her anymore, she didn't look like all that much. At least not as pretty as his "Flower".

(A/N: I like Ichigo and I think she's beautiful. This is the only way I can get this to work, so sorry if I offended anyone^^;;)

"So . . . ." Jen reentered the conversation. "Do you guys have my twin or not?" She sighed, running her hands through her shoulder-length black hair. Her hand stopped midway through when she realized that she was copying Ryo from earlier. She whipped her hand back to her side, still angry at the blonde-haired man.

"Twin?" Pai asked, his serious expression breaking momentarily into a look of bafflement. His dark eyes narrowed suddenly. _'I do not see the same DNA alterations that are in Fate . . . .'_ Fate's sister obviously did not inherit that particular strand of DNA.

"Hello?" Jen called up to them, hands fisted on her hips. Impatience didn't come easily to her, but even she had her limits. The constant ignorance of her presence blew her mind.

"Of course we have her," Kishu stated nonchalantly, leaning back in the air with his hands behind his head. "She's currently a guest aboard our ship," he continued with a sinister smirk. "She may even become a permanent resident among our kind." He laughed at the outraged looks he received from the mew mews at his declaration.

_'You have way too much fun saying that, Kishu,'_ a familiar voice entered the aliens' thoughts. Kishu and Taruto searched around in confusion before spotting Fate hiding behind a few trees near the wolf enclosure. Pai didn't look around, mainly because he didn't want to draw attention to the girl's whereabouts.

"Fate," Kishu said beneath his breath, glancing out of the corner of his eye at her so the mews wouldn't spot her, too.

"What's she doing here?" Taruto asked him quietly, glancing up at his older companion questionably. His ears twitched when he didn't receive an answer.

_'My bag . . .'_ Fate thought forcibly to them.

Kishu brought his attention back down to the mew mews and Fate's twin. Sure enough, the black-haired girl held a black bag in her hands. His flower must have come running when she heard her sister's loud yelling earlier. But it was obvious Fate had no intention of returning with the mews. He smirked.

"Alright then, give her her bag then," Jen demanded as if reading his mind, tossing said bag with all her might at Kishu. She seemed put down when the alien easily caught it. A pout formed on her lips at that, but she turned around anyway and started walking away.

"Wait, Jen!" Lettuce yelled after her. "Where are you going?"

"To bed!" the girl shouted back, raising an arm up in a sign of farewell.

"Uh, okay?" Taruto looked shocked. "What just happened?" he asked the other two. They shrugged at him, teleporting away while the mews remained preoccupied.

"They got away! Na no da!" Pudding exclaimed, pointing up at the now-empty night sky. She seemed slightly sad that her friend, Taruto had left so soon.

"Let's go," Zakuro said emotionlessly, transforming back into a normal-looking human. She walked off in the direction Jen had taken. The other mews shrugged, transformed also, and followed. Well, all in all, it proved to be a pretty uneventful night. At least, they had discovered one thing: Jen's sister was with the Cyniclons.

* * *

"Hey, there, Fate-chan!" Kishu greeted as he appeared in front of Fate and her white wolf.

Fate–no longer surprised by his ability to appear out of thin air–hugged him in excitement, smiling brightly. "Hello, Kishu!" she was so happy with her most-recent accomplishment that she could hardly contain herself.

"Uh. R-ready to go?" Kishu stuttered which was rare (if even possible) for him. This girl was definitely no Ichigo . . . .

Fate let him go, cheeks a bright pink, but not in embarrassment. Excitement glittered in her blue eyes, the first sign of genuine happiness he'd seen since Kishu had met her. "Yep," she nodded, but tilted her head suddenly. "Is it alright if I bring a friend?" Her eyes traveled down to the wolf standing patiently by her side. Kishu followed her gaze and connected with the golden gaze of the wolf.

The wolf broke the contact first.

"I don't see why not," Kishu said which earned him another warm embrace from Fate. He was beginning to think that he'd say "yes" to whatever she'd ask if only to feel her arms around him for a reward. He wrapped his own arms around her, expanding his teleportation field to include the wolf that sat next to his mistress's heels. All three disappeared into the night.

Fate–not ready for the floating sensation this time–gasped at the sudden teleportation. She clung to tighter to Kishu, feeling the alien's muscles tighten at her hold. A second later, and they appeared back in the Cyniclons' ship. A relieved sigh escaped Fate's lips. Jen had most likely known that she had been there (her twin had a way of knowing where she was at all times), so Fate felt thrilled that Jen hadn't called her out back there.

"What's wrong, Fate-chan?" Kishu's voice interrupted her thoughts. Startled, Fate came spinning back to reality and looked up at his concerned face. Her blue eyes widened. She never thought he would show concern for anyone but Ichigo on those rare occasions. At the thought of the cat mew mew, Fate's heart warmed. Kishu didn't even give the red-head a second glance!

"Nothing!" Fate exclaimed, bringing her hands up in front of her face to ward off any more questions.

Kishu didn't look like he trusted what she had said, but didn't push it.

"You should get some sleep, Fate," Pai advised from a few feet behind her. He shook his head at her look of protest. "We will start running some tests on you early tomorrow. We will need you in top condition," he explained logically.

_'Always so serious,'_ Fate thought silently to herself, refraining from rolling her eyes in exasperation. She nodded her head in submission. "Where is my room?" she asked, suddenly remembering that she didn't know her way around their ship. Kishu came up beside her and rested a hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him curiously.

"I'll tuck you into bed if you want," he offered with a grin.

Fate remained silent for a long moment before lifting her hand up in front of Kishu's face. Kishu looked confused for a moment but soon found out what Fate was doing. Fate flicked his nose hard, smirking as Kishu rubbed his abused nose.

"What was that for?" the alien whined, his voice coming out strangely because he still had his hand over his nose.

"For being perverted," Fate replied simply, crossing her arms over her chest. Even though her words sounded harsh, she had a smile on her lips. She had to turn away from Kishu so he couldn't see it. She was surprised with how she was acting around the three boys. Normally, her misanthropy would get in the way of her making friends with anyone. This was one of the reasons why Jen was the only good friend she had, and the only one she could tease or order around.

"I'll take you to your room," Taruto sighed. He wondered how long it would take for Fate to get annoyed by Kishu's "charms". For Ichigo, it was immediately . . . .

"I may as well get some sleep myself," the young boy said, floating down to the ground. He waved at Fate, motioning for her to follow him. She did after saying goodnight to Pai and Kishu, her wolf trotting at her heels.

"Aw!" Kishu cried after she had left, a pout on his face. "That's just not fair! Why can't she stay with me, Pai?" he grumbled, glaring at his purple-haired companion. Pai ignored him. Kishu snorted at him as he plopped to the ground cross-legged. An idea popped into his head, making Kishu's frown turn into a sinister smirk. _'I'll just make a midnight rendezvous, then.'_

* * *

"Did you guys find any mew aqua?" Fate asked, her gut clenching as she waited for the answer.

Taruto glanced back at her before answering. "Nope, we couldn't find a drop." He fell back to walk beside her, putting his hands behind his head.

"Oh," Fate muttered, not knowing what else to say. The tight feeling in her chest eased and she let out a mental sigh of gratitude. Her white hair fell in front of her eyes again. Fate frowned at it and blew forcibly to get it out of her vision. Taruto's laughter caught her attention. "What?" she asked the boy as they stopped midway down the hall.

"Why don't you just put your hair up since it's bothering you so much," he recommended in an obvious tone.

"Because it's better down," Fate argued, blushing. _'When it's loose, it covers my skin and eyes so it protects me from the sun better,'_ she thought to herself. They started walking down the hall again, but, this time, in silence. After a moment or two, Fate decided to speak up. "So . . ." she grinned, "who was that girl with the pigtails?"

Taruto stopped dead in his tracks.

"You know," she pushed, blue eyes glittering, "the one with the blonde hair and yellow outfit?" Fate tried to force an innocent look onto her face, but she couldn't keep from grinning.

"Uh­–uh," Taruto stuttered at her, unable to speak coherently. "Sh–she's nobody! Just one of the mew mews. They always get in our way–"

"Then why were you staring at her like that?" Fate cut in, leaning over to get to his eye-level. His look of embarrassment amused her. She couldn't resist the next question that came into her head. "Do you like her, by any chance?"

A bright red covered Taruto's entire face and he stumbled over his words. "Yo–your room. There. 'Night!" he rushed, waving pointedly at a black door before flying into his own room and slamming the door behind him.

Fate chuckled, hiding a smile behind her pale hand as she pushed open the door Taruto had indicated. Stepping into the dimly-lit room, Fate looked around in awe. "Sugoi!" she exclaimed aloud for the second time that night, taking in the more-than-adequate surroundings of her new bedroom. In one corner of the room stood a teak armoire with ornate etchings on the doors. Next to it, a full-length mirror gleamed at her; it's decorative edges quite appealing to her artistic tastes. About four 6' tall lamps were positioned around the room, illuminating the room with a soft yellow light. The walls had black wallpaper with silver vines and red flowers stretching all the way to the ceiling where starts winked down at her. Fate stared up at the night sky in complete wonderment. It looked so real! The stars, the moon, and even the Milkway! It looked like a complete replica of the sky on Earth. She briefly wondered if the ceiling would reveal a blue sky with stray clouds and the sun once it became daylight. She hoped not. Stars were far more beautiful than any glaring orb of light.

When she moved her eyes down to the center of the room, she froze. A king-sized, four-poster bed greeted her eyes from the middle of the room. A thick, black comforter stretched across the mattress. Red, white, and black pillows piled at the head of the bed. Red cloth draped elegantly down the four corners of the bed, sweeping the black carpet of the floor.

Fate walked over to the bed after shutting the door gently behind her. She ran her hands over the silky feel of the blanket in astonishment. Looking around her, Fate faintly realized that her jaw had been hanging open all this time. She closed her mouth.

"I can't believe how . . ." she trailed off, looking for the right word. "_Normal_ this all looks." A smile came to her lips when the white wolf leapt onto the bed next to her. A thoughtful look suddenly came over her face when she realized something, "Kishu still has my bag . . . ."

The wolf whined at her side, pushing his head against her lax arm. "Alright, Lock," she smiled at the pup. She started petting him, scratching behind his ears every now and then. Her eyelids started to droop after a few minutes of this. "Well, I suppose it's bedtime," she told Lock with an exaggerated yawn. With one last rub to the pup's white fur, Fate crawled to the head of the bed and pulled back the covers. Some of the pillows tumbled to the floor, but Fate just left them as she burrowed under the covers. "G'night, Lock," she whispered to the wolf as he curled up at her feet. He flicked an ear at her in response and closed his eyes. Fate smiled before falling asleep herself. She didn't hear the door creak open as someone entered the room . . . .


	3. DNA: Defining Nature and Alterations

_Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew_._

_Crimson: Hm? Pai or Ryo? **rubs chin thoughtfully**_

_Fate: What are you talking about?_

_Pai and Ryo: And what does it have to do with me?_

_Crimson and Fate: O.o_

_Jen: Cool! Stereo!_

_Fate: **hits Jen with paper fan**_

_Crimson: And we go _SaiYuki_ on you guys . . . **sweatdrops**_

_Fate: Which you don't own either._

_Crimson: T.T I know already! I know! Don't rub it in!_

_Jen: So who have you decided on?_

_Crimson: Read on!_

_Jen: Wait!_

* * *

**Chapter Three–**

**DNA: Defining Nature and Alterations**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

Sunlight filtered in through the part in the window curtains, falling upon the sleeping face of Jen. The girl scrunched up her face in displeasure and flipped the covers over her head in her sleep. Only her silky, black hair peeked out from the white covers, spilling across the red pillows she lay upon.

A knock at her door roused Jen from her sleep, but she didn't answer it. She kept herself hidden beneath the soft, snowy sheets in hopes that the person would go away and leave her be.

Her hopes shattered as she heard the door open.

"You need to get up, Jen," Ryo's voice reached her. Jen bristled at the sound. She didn't like the bossy blonde. "You said you'd work for your room and board. And it _is_ time to open, you know," Ryo continued.

Jen noticed that his voice was close, but still coming from the hallway. He hadn't entered her room, just stood outside of it. That was about the only thing holding Jen back from leaping out of her bed and clawing his eyes out. Obviously, she wasn't a morning person . . . .

"Alright," she mumbled at him, throwing back the covers to get up and get dressed. The second she did, however, she noticed a certain _kawaii_ outfit hanging from the knob on her door.

"Wear that. It's your uniform," Ryo's voice came from the other side of her door. She heard his footsteps walk off down the hallway before disappearing somewhere near the stairs.

Jen stared at the dress with a light blush spreading across her cheeks. "So . . . so cute!" she cried, leaping from her bed and bounding over to the door to try on the red and white outfit.

* * *

The first thing Fate noticed was the comforting feeling of someone holding her close. Their body heat surrounded her, cloaking her in a warm blanket. She sleepily burrowed her head in the person's chest, relaxing to the sounds of their heart beating steadily. It didn't occur to her to wonder _who _was in bed with her, or even _why _there was someone in bed with her to begin with. She would care about that when she woke up. For now, her groggy mind was in instinct mode. And her animal instincts liked this feeling of warmth and protection. Fate simply obeyed those urges and cuddled up to the one emitting that feeling of safety.

Someone's lips pressed against her forehead, kissing her gently. That caused Fate's eyes to flutter open. Blue eyes looked up and locked with the golden gaze of Kishu. A moment passed before realization hit her and Fate jumped back in shock. Thankfully, the bed was large enough for her to stay on it and not fall off the side in surprise.

"Wh-What are you doing here?! In-In b-bed with me?!" she asked accusingly, staring wide-eyes at the green-haired alien. Kishu just smirked at her, which caused her to blush profusely.

"I didn't _do_ anything to you while you were sleeping," he promised, staring at her knowingly.

Fate glared at him, but her blush just got darker which proved his point. She _had_ thought that he would do something to her. Nothing really bad, but she wouldn't put it past him to take a peek or cop a feel. Not that she had helped herself very much, what with her snuggling up to him. She looked away from Kishu in embarrassment.

"That's not the point!" she bit out, holding the black comforter in place around her shoulders for comfort. She hadn't realized that the blanket pulled at Kishu and was drawing him marginally closer as she bunched it around her shoulders. "How did you get in here?" she asked curiously, peeking at him through her white hair.

"I walked in through the door," Kishu answered, taking advantage of his position and crawling over to her on all fours. He smirked at the nervousness in Fate's face as he inched closer to her. "I told you, didn't I?" he continued, taking hold of her wrist in one hand while wrapping his other arm around her waist. He pulled her closer to his body, like he had done the night before when he had snuck into bed with her. "I wanted to sleep with you." He started to lean in for a kiss when a loud knock sounded on the door. They both looked up, startled.

"Kishu! I know you're in there!" Taruto's voice erupted through the wood. "Fate, I hope you're dressed!"

Fate briefly wondered why he asked before a teleportation hole opened in the middle of the room and Taruto appeared. "Um. Hi," Fate greeted uncertainly, pushing at Kishu's chest.

"Leave us alone, Taruto," Kishu demanded, glaring at the brown-haired boy. They had a short stare down before Taruto broke it with an indignant sneer.

"Pft! Yeah, right!" Taruto scoffed, smirking down at his elder. "You're in trouble, Kishu. Once Pai finds out, you're probably going into confinement." Taruto floated near Kishu's head who made a grab at him, but Taruto managed to evade it. "He specifically told you _not_ to go anywhere near the girl!" the young alien accused.

Fate decided to intervene before things got out of hand. "Hold on, Taruto!" she cut in, startling both Kishu and Taruto out of their current heated argument. "I asked him to wake me up early. I asked last night," she fibbed, praying that Taruto would buy it. "That's why he's in here." Taruto looked like he didn't believe her. Even Kishu stared at her in disbelief until Fate gave him a pointed glare.

"Uh. Yeah," Kishu enforced Fate's plea. "She asked me to wake her up this morning so Pai could do his tests today." He smiled innocently up at the floating kid.

Taruto frowned, looking from one face to the next. Finally, he sighed in defeat. "Fine! If Fate says it's okay, then it's okay." He glared at Kishu once more before he teleported away. He still had a few questions about why the two were in bed together, but decided it was their business and not his.

"Whew!" Fate let out a sigh, flopping onto her back in exhaustion. "I can't believe that he caught us." Realizing what she had just said, she slapped her hands over her betraying mouth.

Kishu grinned, moving over the girl and straddling her hips with his legs. "How 'bout we finish what we started?" he asked her, grin growing wider at Fate's burning face. He leaned down–moving her hands from her mouth–and kissed her. This time, he took the kiss deeper, licking her lower lip with a rough tongue. Fate opened her mouth timidly, allowing him entrance into her mouth which he readily accepted. He explored her, tasting her, even wrestling briefly with her own tongue before reluctantly pulling back. Panting slightly, Kishu stared into the blue eyes of Fate who looked back up at him in what he suspected was love and affection. It made him feel warm and fuzzy inside.

"Okay, guys!" Taruto's voice came floating in from outside Fate's door. "Pai needs Fate out in the lab now!"

"Be right out!" Kishu shouted back to him happily, still hovering over Fate.

Fate struggled from her position beneath Kishu. She tried to wriggle her way out, but didn't get very far because Kishu pulled her up suddenly and teleported into the lab.

* * *

"So she's been working like this all day?" Lettuce asked Ryo as she watched Jen run from table to table. Ryo simply nodded at the green-haired girl.

"Yes, she has," Keiichiro answered for his friend. "It's quite inspiring to see such a hard-worker. We've been getting several compliments about our service all day." He saw Ichigo's glare and quickly corrected himself. "Uh. Not that we haven't before, of course."

Mint sipped her tea, sitting at her table like always. "Well, _I _think it's rather tiring to watch somebody work so hard." She took another sip of her tea before continuing her criticizing. "Although my table's never been cleaner . . . ."

"Whoa," Pudding remarked. "Onee-chan _never _gives compliments, na no da!" The blonde-haired girl jumped onto her ball and started doing tricks for the customers, earning a lot of applauding and tips. "Okay, who wants to see some more tricks?!" she cried out to the cheering crowd. Everyone yelled for more.

"She's getting better about not breaking things," Mint complimented as she watched Pudding's maneuvers. Everyone nodded in agreement.

Jen, however, wasn't feeling too impressed by the display. Pudding nearly ran over the brunette during her routine. The thirteen-year-old decided to disappear for awhile as the yellow girl, as she called her, did her acrobatics.

She picked up an abandoned broom near the kitchen and walked down a long hallway, sweeping as she went. Coming to a slightly-ajar door, Jen stopped. She cocked her head curiously at it; her green eyes staring at a soft light coming from between the crack of the door and its frame. "This is that place Ryo disappears to," she surmised, having listened to that part of her sister's story. With a careful hand, she pushed open the heavy door and stepped inside. Cautiously, she looked around. Several computers and glaring screens met her eyes. Those must have been where that light had come from.

"What's that?" Jen asked aloud, walking over to a particularly-intriguing feature. Reaching out with a slender hand, Jen let her long fingers run over the smooth surface of what appeared to be a golden cat statue. "So pretty . . ." she murmured to herself, continuing to pet the winged cat's head. The ruby jewels in its eyes shone brightly out at her.

Something warm and furry brushed against her leg, causing Jen to suddenly jump up and "eep!" in terror. She stumbled backwards into the golden statue, hitting her head hard on its gleaming surface. As she rubbed her head in pain, tears in her eyes, Jen leaned heavily on the head of the winged cat. A warming sensation blossomed beneath her palm, alerting her to the unexpected buzzing of the surface she was resting on. Glancing up at the garnet gaze of the feline statue, Jen noticed several things all at once.

First, the cat's eyes were _glowing_. Literally shining out at her! Second, the vibrations running through the statue had grown stronger. Strong enough, in fact, that she could feel it coming through the floor! And last but not least, the longer she stood there staring at the eyes of the winged creature, the more dizzy and tired she began to feel. Jen spun into darkness, even as she strained to keep her eyes open. "What's . . . going . . . on?" she asked in a strained whisper to the shadows as they pulled her down.

She received no answer.

* * *

Meanwhile, Jen's sister, Fate, dealt with troubles of her own. Wires covered most of her body, having been inserted by both Pai and Taruto in all kinds of areas. She flicked a finger, one wire jiggled. On both index fingers, there was a clip which connected to a wire which, in turn, ran across the floor to Pai's podium. Sensitive stickers clung to her temples and even her chest, transmitting data into the Cyniclons' computer wirelessly. Pai had forced her to remove her white shirt, which she had done albeit with much argument. She stubbornly kept on her black tank top which swept low across her breasts. Kishu had had no qualms with Pai's insistence on the clothing removal, but had pouted when he had realized that was the only garment to be stripped of.

"How long does this take?" Fate asked the three aliens standing in front of her. Pai and Taruto looked up at her from their computer screens. Kishu had been staring at her the whole time. Fate had been trying her best to ignore Kishu's stare, but had found it increasingly harder the longer she sat on the pedestal in front of them. She shifted her weight uncomfortably. The stone she sat on was unexpectedly warm, but still it was stone so it had a pretty hard surface. She coughed lightly into her hand.

"It shouldn't take much longer. Right, Pai?" Taruto said, looking up at the older Cyniclon.

Pai nodded in the affirmative as he returned to his typing. "Once I have your data, I can decipher it through my terminal," he explained as he focused on his work. "Just a few more minutes and I will have the figures I need to compose a proper analysis."

Fate nodded her head at him before returning to her frozen state. Her thoughts wandered to what Jen was doing at this very moment. She got a strange buzzing feeling in her chest all of a sudden, causing her to automatically place a hand over her heart. Darkness obscured the edge of her vision for a moment and Fate could swear she heard her twin's voice for a moment. Though she strained her hearing, Fate couldn't understand the words.

"Fate?! Wake up?!" Kishu's voice came to her from far away. She wondered briefly why he was yelling to her. Wasn't she just a few yards away from him?

"What's happened to her, Pai?" Taruto's young voice came next, panic lacing his words. Fate couldn't put two and two together. She could hear the Cyniclons but couldn't see them. All that met her blue eyes was a darkness that pressed at her from all sides. Nothing made any sense. Nothing, that is, except the sudden urgency to reach her sister by any means necessary . . . .

"Her heart rate is slowing down," Pai informed them. Even his voice held a note of concern in it.

"NO!" Kishu cried out, already beyond panic. Fate felt his hands clutching her shoulders, but it seemed as if she was experiencing his touch from far away. It was hard for her to explain . . . to herself.

_'Onee-chan?'_ a familiar, girl's voice whispered from behind her.

Fate tried to turn around but was stopped by someone clinging to her back.

_'Don't turn around, Fate,' _the voice continued, holding Fate's head in place to keep her from so much as looking behind her. Fate struggled for a bit, but ended up submitting to her sister's orders. _'I have a surprise for you when I see you next,' _Jen told her with a laugh. _'But you have to promise not to hit me!'_

Fate smiled, but didn't nod her head. _'What are you doing? Why can't I look at you?'_ She didn't receive an answer for the longest time. She fidgeted uncomfortably, unable to move due to the hands on either side of her face.

_'Two reasons,' _her "younger" sister informed her. _'But I'll only tell you one . . .' _she trailed off for a bit, before taking a deep breath and barreling forward. _'You can't turn around at all because, if you do, you'll most likely die.' _There, she had said it. Now to wait for the exclamation of denial that would, no doubt, come out of Fate's mouth.

_'Oh,' _was all Fate said, surprising Jen with the simple (not to mention, complacent) answer.

_'Is that all you have to say?' _Jen asked, momentarily forgetting that she had to end this conversation quickly.

_'This is astral projection, right?'_ Fate asked knowingly. _'I'm a witch, Jen,'_ she let out an exasperated sigh. Her sister should have remembered that much, at least. _'I've never been able to hold a mental connection for very long. Especially when I'm coming down with something. A spiritual excursion from my body, like this . . .' _she trailed off for a bit, not knowing how to word the next part. _'Is . . . dangerous when my body is already in poor health even with me _in _it.'_

Jen remained quiet for a few moments. She jumped when a sudden electric shock went through her twin's body. Even _she_ could hear the voices calling to Fate from far away. _'Are those the Cyniclons?'_ Jen asked her sister. Seeing Fate's nod, she cocked her head in sudden thought. _'Once you're back in your body, will we still be able to communicate mind-to-mind?' _It was obvious she was new at this whole "magic" thing.

_'Yes,' _Fate answered her. _'We've established a connection on the spiritual plane so we can communicate with our minds. It shouldn't affect my body at all,' _she explained before Jen could ask about that. _'You just have to be a little more careful,'_ Fate asked, rolling her eyes. Her thoughts focused on that strange vibration she had felt run through her body. Before she could ask Jen about that, she felt herself pulled abruptly forward. Jen's voice floated in the darkness behind her, saying a strangled farewell. Fate frowned. She had to guess that Jen had probably pushed her so the brunette wouldn't have to answer the unvoiced question.

"Fate-chan!" Kishu cried as she opened her eyes. When had she closed them? She couldn't remember . . . .

"Oh! Thank heavens!" the Cyniclon cried, throwing his arms around the pale girl as she slowly sat up. He buried his face in the crook of her neck. Fate could feel the wetness of his tears drop onto her skin. She stiffened in his hold, but quickly relaxed as he continued to cry into her shoulder. He was crying over _her_! She couldn't erase that thought from her brain. Feelings she couldn't explain exploded within her. The sudden urge to comfort Kishu came over her. Before she could, however, Taruto and Pai intervened.

"Don't you ever do that again!" Taruto demanded furiously, hands fisted at his sides. At first glance, he looked really angry, but Fate could see the telltale signs of relief in his golden eyes and the stains from tears on his cheeks. He had probably rubbed away his tears just a moment ago, trying to appear as if he didn't care about her life.

"You nearly died," Pai told her in a strained voice. He had no tears on his face. Fate hadn't expected that he would.

"Did you get the data you needed?" Fate asked, surprising herself with the raw sound her voice made. She rubbed her throat with one hand, while her other arm wrapped comfortingly around Kishu's shoulders.

Kishu looked up at her, his golden eyes now dry. He looked angry. "That doesn't matter!" he shouted at her. He couldn't believe that Fate was ignoring her near-death experience and asking about some useless data. "You could've _died_! Doesn't that mean anything to you?!" He watched as shock and guilt entered Fate's blue eyes. Kishu immediately regretted his angry words. "Sorry, I didn't mean . . . ." he trailed off, looking away from her. A feeling of soft lips on his cheek startled him out of his self-bashing. Kishu stared at Fate after she pulled away from him with a smile on her face.

"You're right," she said. "But I want to help you guys," Fate explained in earnest. She truly _did_ want to help the Cyniclons. _'I mean, they used to live on Earth, but got chased out because of a natural disaster. Then, they end up escaping to some frozen, harsh planet only to turn right back around and discover that Earth had become paradise once more.' _She had to tune back into reality to catch what Pai was saying.

"We managed to extract the data we need," Pai told her, watching her with calculating eyes. Fate squirmed beneath his harsh gaze, uncomfortable with how hard to read the oldest of them was. "Kishu," he redirected his attention to the green-haired boy who still clung to his flower.

"Yes?" he looked up at his comrade, wondering what he was wanting now.

"Take Fate to Earth," he instructed. "The air will be good for her even if it isn't all that clean," he added the last part as an afterthought.

Fate wrinkled her nose in distaste at that part about air pollution. He may have had a point, but, still, it wasn't _that_ bad . . . .

"Hm. I guess that's not a bad idea," Taruto surmised, watching Fate's eyes light up at the prospect of going outside. "I think she likes the outdoors." He knew he had hit the mark when Fate's face grew red in embarrassment. He laughed mercilessly at the crimson girl before she gave him a swift smack on the head. "Hey!" he complained, holding the top of his head as he floated into the air to get away from the girl's fists.

"I think she's getting better already," Kishu laughed, revealing his sharp canines which Fate secretly liked. "Alright, let's go." He leaned over Fate, hugging her to him as they teleported away.

* * *

"What on earth did you do?" Ryo asked Jen in an aggravated voice. He had discovered the girl unconscious on the floor of his laboratory just over an hour ago. As he brought her up to her room, he had found himself wondering if she had messed around with any of the information on the Cyniclons he and the mews had gathered thus far. Which brought him to the question of whether or not this girl was a spy for the Cyniclons. Of course, all of those thoughts had fled the moment she had woken up. The second Jen had spotted him in her room with her, her ears and tail had popped out.

"I'm sorry!" she cried, knowing exactly what she had done. Even though she didn't watch the show much, Jen had seen a couple episodes. Namely, the first one had caught her eye.

"Well, I suppose it can't be helped," Ryo sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as a headache grew behind his eyes. "Come on, we have to tell the girls what happened. And why you're their new teammate." He started to walk out the door, but noticed that Jen hadn't budged. Before he could ask what was wrong, Jen spoke.

"Teammates?" she repeated curiously, her ears twitching on the top of her head.

"Yeah," Ryo answered. "You're now a mew mew, Jen."


	4. Cherri Metamorphosis & Evolutionary Fate

_Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew_._

_Crimson: You know, I think I'm going to need some help from the readers to decide who Jen hooks up with. Ryo? Pai? Both? Help me out, please and I'll pick at least one reviewer to enter into this story._

_Jen: Which implies that they need to send an Oc sheet with their review, right?_

_Crimson: Of course! Here's what I'll need (include any extra information that you want):_

_**Name of own character**_

_**Gender**_

_**Age**_

_**Hair color**_

_**Eye color**_

_**Skin color**_

_**Race (if applicable, like alien, mew mew, or human, or half of one or more of these)**_

_**Special Talent**_

_**Attitude**_

_**Favorite guy/girl from **_**Tokyo Mew Mew****_ (say if you want to get together with him/her)_**

_Jen: That's a lot of detail . . . O.o_

_Crimson: Well, I need all of it to make sure I get their character right._

_Jen: Oh . . . . Anyway, Read on! And please review ASAP. I would like to finally know who I get together with!_

* * *

**  
**

**Chapter Four­–**

**Mew Cherri Metamorphosis & Evolutionary Fate**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

The warm breeze danced through the leaves, combing Fate's long white hair as she watched the puffy clouds pass lazily overhead. The slight rise and fall of Kishu's chest (which she had her head resting upon) was beginning to lull her to sleep. Geez, she sure had been sleeping a lot, ne?

"Geez," Kishu mimicked her thoughts. "You sure do sleep a lot."

Fate thought she heard an echo. She stifled a laugh, deciding that half an hour of relaxation was plenty. Her long bangs fell into her blue eyes as she sat up. A frown curved her lips at them. Kishu snickered at her from behind, but, before she could turn around to glare at him, his pale hands pulled her silver hair behind her shoulders. After a few light tugs, Fate realized that Kishu was braiding her hair.

"What are you doing, Kish-kun?" she asked him, even though she already knew _what_ he was doing. She just didn't know _why_.

"Hm. 'Kish-kun'?" he savored the nickname, glad that his "flower" had given him one. His long fingers tied off the long braid with a special violet tie he had brought with him from his home planet. "It bothers you when it's loose, right?" He smiled at her when she turned to give him a questioning glance. "This is better," he finished getting to his feet and offering a hand to help her up.

Fate took his proffered hand without hesitation–a thing she normally would not do. She thought about his answer for a bit, mulling it over in her mind as she started walking down the grassy hill Kishu had teleported them to. Kishu, of course, had decided that floating in the air was easier than walking, so Fate had to dodge him whenever he would purposefully drift too close. "Um, thank you, by the way," she told him, suddenly remembering her manners. At Kishu's blank stare, Fate flicked her now-braided hair. It bounced on her back, a feeling she unexpectedly liked. She had never put her hair up before, preferring it down as an extra sun block.

"You're welcome, Fate-chan," Kishu purred into her ear as he hovered at her shoulder.

Fate blushed before erupting into a coughing fit without warning. Her knees buckled and she fell to the emerald-green grass. After about three minutes of hacking up what felt like a whole lung, Fate finally gasped in some much-needed air. It took her a minute longer to notice Kishu kneeling at her side looking worried. She waved weakly at him to show that she was fine now. When she tried to stand, however, her legs gave and she fell straight into Kishu's arms.

"What's wrong?" Kishu demanded, golden eyes watching Fate's paling face with growing alarm. The Cyniclon picked Fate up bridal style, feet planted firmly on the ground.

"I'm just getting sick," she replied, holding her hand over her mouth as she felt another coughing fit trying to make its way up. Her throat felt raw and torn, and it hurt like hell to swallow. But swallow she did, in a last-ditch attempt to keep the coughs at bay. "Could we go see my sister, Kish-kun?" she asked the golden-eyed boy. Her indigo eyes begged and pleaded with him until the alien gave in.

"Sure," Kishu yielded to the puppy-dog look. Although he didn't know why Fate needed to see her twin, he teleported her anyway to Café Mew Mew.

* * *

"Will you stop breaking dishes?!" Ryo yelled at the black-haired girl whose ears popped out at his sudden voice.

Jen cowered on the floor, right next to the plate that had shattered on the hard tile. Lettuce came by with a broom and a pan, swept the broken pieces, and dropped them into the trash can where a mountain of other broken dishes had piled up in. She gave the cowering girl a gentle smile and offered a hand to help her up. Jen returned the smile and took hold of Lettuce's outstretched hand.

"Thank you," Jen said gratefully to her friend. She and Lettuce had quickly hit it off and become fast friends.

"You're welcome, Jen-san," the green-haired girl replied, pulling her friend to her feet. "Maybe I'll finish what's left of the dishes, okay? You should sweep outside and get some air," she suggested, knowing the green-eyed girl needed a break and that Ryo wouldn't allow it.

"That's probably a good idea," Jen conceded, silently thanking Lettuce with all her heart. Taking the broom and pan from Lettuce, she practically ran from the room.

Ryo didn't even have time to object to her leaving to sweep up outside before Jen's blur went right past him. He crossed his arms and glared at the front entrance where the doors still swung from the girl's passage. A gentle, restraining hand settled on his shoulder. Looking to his right, Ryo caught the soft expression of Keiichiro.

"Don't be too hard on her," the brown-haired chef advised. "When some people are stressed, they tend to be clumsy."

"And where did you hear that from?" Ryo asked his friend, blue eyes narrowing.

"Jen told me a few minutes ago," Keiichiro responded with a smile. Ryo rolled his eyes at him, wondering when the chef had become such good friends with the new mew.

"Alien alert! Alien alert!" Masha cried, flying around the thankfully-empty cake shop. All five mews, plus Ryo and Keiichiro, immediately went into full alert. The fuzzy, pink robot took off outside and the others followed soon after. They all stopped at the sight that greeted their bemused eyes.

"Onee-chan!" Jen greeted the white-haired girl who had leapt from Kishu's arms and _floated_ down to her twin. Yes, she had _floated_. Even Kishu had a shocked look on his face.

At Jen's shout, her tail and ears popped out. Even her hair turned a red-orange color and her outfit transformed from its maid dress to a cute, red outfit that resembled Ichigo's. Jen had gone into full mew-mode.

"Imouto-chan?" Fate inquired as she alighted on the ground in front of her sister. "_This _was what you were talking about?" A red tic appeared on her temple, cautioning Jen not to take one step closer. Jen, of course, did not heed the warning and opted, instead, to pounce on her sibling.

"I missed you soooo much, _meine schwester_!" the new fox mew mew exclaimed in German. "_Zwei_! _Zwei Tagen_!"

(A/N: translations: "My sister!" & "Two! Two days!")

"It's barely been one full day since Kishu took me to his ship," Fate reasoned, amusement overriding her previous frustration. Calculating the passage of time was never a strong suit for her sibling. Even during the school day, Jen would swear that several hours had already passed by when only ten minutes of class had elapsed. The teacher always had a hard time convincing the eccentric "young lady" that one minute did not equal an entire day out of her young life.

Another coughing fit interrupted the twins' reunion and Fate slumped to the ground. She tried her best to hold as much of it in as she could. Her chest burned and, what felt like a white-hot knife sliced repeatedly just below her ribs. Even her body temperature sky-rocketed. All in all, Fate felt like hell.

Jen immediately crouched down beside her. Sea green eyes focused on the part of Fate's chest that her sister held onto tightly. Fate's knuckles had turned white (well, whiter than normal) and Jen had a feeling that a bruise had begun to form on the skin she clutched so desperately to.

"What's wrong?" a familiar voice asked in her ear. Jen would have jumped out of her skin if not for Ryo's restraining hand on her shoulder.

"My sister's very sick," Jen exclaimed, trying to slow her racing heart down. "She always gets like this after using her power." _'Although it's never been _this_ bad before . . .'_ Her forehead creased in worry, watching the pain on her sister's pale face as she tried to breathe in precious oxygen in-between gut-wrenching coughs.

"Power?" Kishu repeated slowly. His golden eyes narrowed. "What power?" he snapped at Jen, his worry and fear for Fate getting the better of him. The moment Fate fell, Kishu had dropped to the ground and wrapped his arms around her in a vain effort to ease her pain. Unfortunately, other than the fact that Fate clutched at his shirt with one hand, his presence didn't seem to help very much.

"Healing . . ." Fate spoke softly, her coughs finally abating. Her vision swam and her ribcage still throbbed, but, at least, the coughing had finally stopped. She looked up at Kishu, her sore neck straining to keep her head upright. "I healed that wolf, Lock, back at the zoo. He had a fatal wound . . . ." she trailed off, knowing Kishu probably wouldn't believe her. Hell, _she_ barely believed herself! Speaking of Lock, where had that pup gone to? She didn't even recall seeing him when she had woken up this morning. Her cheeks grew red and not because of the fever. Then again, all her attention had been focused on her new bed-buddy, Kishu . . . .

"You can heal animals?" Ichigo and Pudding asked simultaneously. Jen, Kishu, and Fate had all forgotten that the mews just stood a few feet away.

"Well, if it isn't Ichigo and her little friends," Kishu snickered meanly. His eyes seemed to glow gold as he watched his enemies closely. The fact that hehad transported himself and Fate straight to them didn't faze him in the least. "I've been meaning to introduce you to a new friend of mine." He raised a hand skyward, a glowing jellyfish-like thing appearing in his palm. A few seconds later, an elegant crystal materialized at the infuser's side. The infuser gobbled up the soul and began to shine with a violet light. "Fusion!" Kishu cried.

A strong gust of wind hit everyone in the immediate area, including Fate and Kishu. Fate was whisked into the sky by the Cyniclon, escaping any threat this new fusion creature could possibly dish out for her. The girl only possessed strength enough to cling to the alien's shirt front. The decision to hit him on the head later as punishment for pulling a stunt like this was pushed temporarily to the back of her mind. For now, Fate watched the scene unfold below them, knowing full-well that her sister could take care of herself even if the mews could not. A feeling of déjà vu welled within her when she saw what appeared to be a wolf-boy emerge from the colored light. He looked a lot like a ten-year-old human, only a white wolf tail and white wolf ears appeared on his person. Even his eyes were colored a brilliant shade of yellow, like a wolf.

_'Lock?' _Fate thought to herself in awe. Glancing up at Kishu, Fate could have sworn she saw him wink at her. He hadn't . . . .

"This one is different from his previous predacytes," Zakuro pointed out, watching the wolf warily like her instincts told her to. She felt Mint press against her side–the scent of apprehension making its way to her wolf nose–but resisted the urge to console her.

"He looks like one of us, na no da!" Pudding announced to the others as she leapt in front of their potential opponent. Her golden hair bounced around her face as the wind suddenly centered on her. Fortunately for Pudding, her monkey instincts kicked in and she jumped out of the way as a spear pierced the place where she had just stood. "Whoa!" the young acrobat cried as she landed effortlessly next to Jen who had been standing a few feet away.

The young boy pulled back his right arm, and the spear that had embedded itself in the outside wall of Café Mew Mew flew back to him. His pale hand grasped the four-foot-long ivory handle of the weapon, wielding it surprisingly well considering his young appearance and short stature. He crouched down in a defensive stance, spear crossed protectively across his body. His golden eyes flicked once up to the pair floating in the sky, catching the eye of a particular girl.

Fate stared down at the white-haired boy in shock before reverting her attention to Kishu. "Nani? What did you do, Kishu?" she asked, trying to sound angry but her scratchy voice came out as more of a whimper than a growl. She opted for glaring at the alien instead.

"What?" Kishu shrugged his shoulders emphatically, holding his flower bridal-style. "_He's_ the one who asked for it, you know." He closed his eyes and turned his face away from Fate, starting to feel guilty for giving in to the white wolf the previous night. "He said he wanted to have a human body," Kishu explained, peeking at Fate with one golden eye. His breath got knocked out of him when he saw the blue aura gathering around the girl in his arms. Surprised, Kishu stopped worrying about the mews and stared at Fate.

Instead of fighting with her words (like she knew she should), Fate bonked Kishu on the head. She hadn't expected him to release her in mid-air at the hit. Her eyes closed tightly as she waited for the inevitable fall. A shriek would've left her mouth if Fate hadn't bit down on her lower lip to stubbornly keep it in. Even without Kishu supporting her, Fate didn't feel the pull of gravity. The feeling of falling never came, causing Fate to peek open her eyes in curiosity. What she saw overwhelmed her. A blue glow enveloped her body, emanating from deep inside of her. She knew it was the same force that she always used to heal things. That same warm, cozy feeling coursed through her veins, and she could swear that she could feel the air running over skin like a bubbling brook even after the glow had faded.

"Fate," Kishu breathed out, watching his flower hovering in the air on her own, much like he and his kind did. He couldn't wrap his brain around it. There had to be an explanation for this. Maybe Pai would know . . . .

"Mew Mew Metamorphosis!" arose several voices from below Kishu and Fate.

The pair looked down at the commotion still taking place in front of the cake shop. No one seemed to have taken notice of Fate's little development. And no one would, it seemed, as Fate suddenly felt herself drop and Kishu had to rescue her. Fate clung to him, once again, feeling more tired than before as she watched the battle below.

"Cherri Rainbow Mirror!" Jen shouted out first, not bothering to wait for the others. A mirror as big around as her head appeared in her red, fingerless-gloved hands. All the colors of the rainbow shone on the surface and she directed the front at her opponent–Lock. A stream of multiple colors burst forth from the mirror, hurtling straight at the wolf-boy. The attack, no doubt, would have been the final blow if Lock hadn't leapt suddenly out of the way. The mews looked up as their newest enemy disappeared with Fate and Kishu.

"It looks like your sister has sided with the Cyniclons, Cherri," Ryo cut through the tense atmosphere. His statement made all heads turn toward him. At their questioning glances, Ryo rolled his eyes and answered, "From now on, Jen, you will be known as 'Cherri'. It's your mew name. It'll be easier if we call you 'Cherri' all the time." With that, he turned and walked back into the cake shop as if nothing had happened. Keiichiro just smiled and followed.

"'Cherri'?" Jen/Cherri repeated timidly. A sweatdrop rolled down the back of her head. "But I _hate_ cherries!" she cried up to the sky dramatically. She even added a long "no" to the end of her statement, and sank to her knees. Even the sun seemed to understand her dismal fate for it had sunk to the horizon and created a beautiful sunset for her breakdown moment.

"Um, Cherri?" Ichigo tried to get the girl's attention, but failed as her new teammate just cried some more. All the mews sweatdropped at the scene.

"Great," Mint exclaimed, crossing her arms across her chest in displeasure. "Things just got ten times more interesting. And thirty times more annoying!" She scowled at the fox mew mew who had finally decided to stop crying out her woes.

All the other mew mews agreed with her, nodding their heads in unison.

* * *

"Cyniclon DNA?" Kishu mimicked Pai as he informed him of this newest bit of information. He had left Fate in her room to sleep off all that had transpired that day. Lock had insisted on guarding the door to her room, so the wolf had curled up in the hall with his spear in hand to keep watch. Kishu had a feeling he was watching _him_ in particular. His suspicions were only confirmed when Lock had glared at him for mentioning another midnight rendezvous.

"Yes, Kishu," Pai confirmed. He had been plenty surprised when he had discovered that little tidbit just an hour ago.

"By the way, where's Taruto?" Kishu asked suddenly, looking around for the kid. He hadn't seen him at all since he had brought Fate and Lock back to the ship.

"He said he was going to find some promising souls," Pai replied, not caring for the change in topic. "You know what this means, don't you, Kishu?" He sent a serious look at his younger comrade.

Kishu returned it with an intense look of his own. "Yes, I do." He crossed his arms and smirked. "It means that our newest friend is, at least, part Cyniclon. Fate is one of us."

* * *

"Okay, so what do I say?" Taruto asked himself, pacing in front of the fountain in the park square. So much time had already passed and he _still_ hadn't figured out how to approach the current situation. "Um, hi, do you want to come play with me?" He sweatdropped at that question. Shaking his head roughly, Taruto vetoed that line. "Ew. That's too much like a kid." He looked up suddenly, noticing that the sun was beginning to set on him. "Uh-oh." Kicking up from the ground, the young alien took to the air.

"I better find her quick before Pai finds out what I'm up to. Lucky for me, Kishu wouldn't care since he's got Fate." He floated away to find a certain blonde-haired girl with a talent for acrobatics. "Maybe just 'Wanna go out with me?' will work," he continued talking to himself all the way to Pudding's hoped it would turn out well. If not, well, then, he didn't know what he'd do. He just wanted to try.


	5. New Kids on the Block

_Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew_._

_Crimson: Oh, and, by the way, a huge "THANK YOU" goes out to _

_ –oReTA aWal tsUbAsa–, WereMewKane, XxMichyBabyxX, and Echo- chan1223 who all sent me answers to my question in the previous chapter along with their OC profiles! I've chosen two of your Ocs and they are both in this chapter since I couldn't decide between the two, so Read On! You'll probably figure out whose I chose somewhere in the story, but I'll tell you anyway at the end :P Enjoy!_

_Jen/Cherri: We get friends?_

* * *

**Chapter Five–**

**New Kids on the Block**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

There he was–about to slay the horrid beast that had terrorized the city for more years than he could count! White smoke billowed around the two warriors as each took their battle stance. His sandy-blonde hair lifted in the hot breeze made by the fire of the burning building behind him. The very same building that had held, just moments before, the deadly arsenal that his enemy would have used to destroy Tokyo's entire population. He held out his arm as a purple aura gathered around his fist. In a sudden burst of white light, a double-edged sword appeared in his hold. A kind of euphoria filled him at the sight of the golden blade held by English knights in times of old. He swung it in an arc, threatening his human-like opponent with the display. His light-brown eyes even narrowed as he glared at the shadowed creature with an intensity that matched the flames leaping at his back.

"I won't ever let you harm the people of Tokyo!" he roared out at his foe as he raised his sword above his head then brought it crashing down to the ground. The attack left a huge split in the land, but it missed his opponent by a mile as he leapt out of the way. He frowned.

"Well, that's good, but what about your homework?" a surprisingly-girlish voice came from the shadowed figure. Glowing red eyes squinted in silent amusement at the confusion written plainly on the hero's face.

"Huh?" the sandy-blond boy inquired dumbly. A sudden, resounding smack shocked him out of his day-dreaming. "Ah!" he cried, to which a chorus of laughs arose. Mathew Kane cringed in his seat, wishing he could disappear into the floor right about now. Guiltily, he glanced up at his English teacher, face a nice shade of red.

"Homework," Ms. Peoples repeated slowly and with emphasis. She tapped her long, manicured fingernails on his desk rhythmically. An irritated look passed over her features even though it was obvious that she was trying her best to be patient.

Mathew tried to ignore the constant drumming of her claws on the wood of his desk as he rummaged around in his backpack. He sighed in relief as he found what he was searching for. Without a word, Mathew pulled the rumpled sheet of paper from the green bag and passed it to her. She took it gingerly from his fingers, smiling a kinder smile at him. Mathew returned it with a small smile of his own, too shy around all the new people to say an apology for falling asleep in class . . . for the third time in a row.

"Thank you, Mr. Kane," Sensei told him politely, walking back down the aisle to her desk.

Mathew let out another sigh of relief as she returned to the day's lesson. He caught a few disappointed expressions on the faces of his classmates, knowing that they were wondering why he hadn't gotten into trouble. Letting his brown eyes travel to the front of the classroom, he locked onto the form of his sensei. He tried not to frown as he wrote down the notes she was putting up on the board. _'They must have told the entire staff,'_ he thought silently to himself. What a pain this was turning out to be. As if being labeled the shyest person in the whole school wasn't enough already, now the teachers were going to special-treat him. And all because he was the principal's son!

His hand stopped copying the words from the blackboard into his notebook as he let his gaze stray over to the window. He let his mind drift off into dreamland again. Oh, how he wished his life could change . . . preferably for the better.

* * *

Sunlight peeked through the emerald-green leaves of the tree, warming the rosy cheeks of a seventeen-year-old girl. Long, curly blond hair lay spread out around her slim body as she napped in the noon sun. A soft breath of wind played with her light-colored bangs, brushing them over her closed eyelids. The tickling sensation as the ends of her hair swept across her cheekbones woke the girl up slowly. Pale lashes fluttered open, revealing two bright, amethyst-colored eyes.

Kaonie Kitari opened her mouth in a long yawn, covering it demurely with a slender, slightly-tanned hand. Pushing herself into a sitting position with her other arm, she looked around her, still half-asleep. After realizing that no one was in the small clearing in the trees she had found, Kaonie let out a sigh of relief. Glancing down at the keychain watch dangling from the strap of her violet bag, she gasped aloud at the time.

"I'm going to be late for my interview!" she cried out, scrambling to put the pens and paper scattered around her back into her shoulder bag. The romance story she had been writing instantly erased itself from her mind as she rushed out of the trees and into the park. She stumbled over a young, yellow girl, but didn't stop. Tossing the child a hurried apology over her shoulder, Kaonie continued on her way. She practically ran full-out the next four blocks before skidding to a halt in front of prestigious-looking building.

"Whoa," she breathed out, tilting her head back to see if she could find the top of the skyscraper. She couldn't. At least, not from this close-up.

Kaonie gulped nervously before lifting one foot forward and stepping through the automatic doors into the company. She did the same with the other leg, focusing her thoughts on one thing and one thing only. _'I need this job. I need any job! Please, let this be the one!' _she repeated silently to herself, praying to the heavens above that she would land this opportunity. She didn't much like the idea of slaving away over paperwork and probably spending the rest of her days cramped up in some cubicle. But it wasn't like she had all the time in the world to write her novels and push them to become best-sellers overnight. She let out a breath in one big whoosh, pushing the 12th floor button in the elevator. A soft melody played from the speakers in the upper-left corner. It calmed her nerves a bit. Okay, she could do this. Yeah. No big deal. It was just a job interview. She needed the money. Just as much as she needed a place to live. A sweatdrop rolled down the back of her head. Okay, so she needed the apartment/house more than she needed the money right now, but only so much can happened in a day. Hotel rooms could only put her up for so long . . . .

The heavy, silver doors of the elevator opened. A woman's voice filled the miniature room, "Twelfth floor".

_'What? Already?' _Kaonie stared up at the yellow numbers which flashed with the number 12. Well, okay then. She stepped out of the elevator before the doors could shut on her. Drawing in a deep breath, the blond looked down the lit hallway she had entered. She grimaced. It was dim up here. The only light came from a single window all the way down at the end of the corridor. Wooden doors lined either side of the blue-carpeted hall, bold black letters printed on their fronts which held the names of whose office they were.

Kaonie dug into her back pocket and withdrew a slip of paper on which she had written the room she had to go in to. "'Annie Miyazaki', huh?" Kaonie read the name, already knowing who this was. "Mathew's going to be so jealous!" She grinned, knowing that Annie was the famous Zakuro's agent, and that her friend, Mathew absolutely _loved_ the singer/actress/dancer/supermodel (she's a quadruple-threat, huh?). "Guess I better get going . . ." she mumbled to herself after checking around to see that nobody would hear her talking to herself. She looked at her watch and gasped. Rushing down the hall, Kaonie wondered if the famous proverb: "fashionably late" would work as a good excuse for the agent.

* * *

* * *

_Crimson: And that's it. Kaonie Kitari belongs to XxMichyBabyxX and Mathew Kane belongs to WereMewKane. I'm really sorry that I couldn't get the other OCs in, -oReTA aWal tsUbAsa- and Echo-chan1223. I do have a good excuse: I couldn't get figure out how to fit either one into the story. I tried. I really did. T.T Thank you for sending the responses, though. I'm glad that people took the time to review my story^^_

_Taruto: Laying it on a bit thick, aren't ya?_

_Crimson: **still smiling** It's called "a guilt trip". My mom did it to me all the time._

_Taruto: So that's why you're so messed up._

_Crimson: Taruto's going to disappear for awhile. Pudding, say goodbye to lover-boy! **drags Taruto out of room**_

_Taruto: Ah! Heeeellllppp!_

_Pudding: Buh-bye! **happily**_

_Kaonie &Mathew: **hiding** Scary . . . ._


	6. Echoes on the Surface

_Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew_._

_Crimson: I want to own _Tokyo Mew Mew_ . . . ._

_Fate: But you don't . . . ._

_Crimson: But I _want _to . . . ._

_Fate: But you can't._

_Crimson: But­–_

_Fate: Shut up!_

_Crimson: Kishu! Control your woman!_

_Kishu: 'kay! **lands on Fate and pins her down**_

_Fate: Get off me!_

_

* * *

  
_

**Chapter Six–**

**Echoes on the Surface**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

Fate let out a huge, exaggerated yawn as she sat, cross-legged, on her enormous bed. Ever since Kishu had brought her back to the ship an hour ago, she had been experimenting with her new-found powers alone in her room. Although she had been unable to repeat the floating-in-the-air ability, Fate had discovered a few others. The first one she had uncovered–and her favorite by far–was the creation of her weapons out of thin air.

She held her hands out and mini-whirlwinds appeared over both palms. A second later and she gripped the steel handles of a pair of what appeared to be daggers. Euphoria swept through her as she fondled the weapons in her possession. The blades had a jagged and very odd shape to them. They _looked_ like they wouldn't be very handy in a real battle. They even gave the impression of being more decorative than deadly. With a quick flick of her wrist, Fate revealed the reason for the unusual structure of the daggers. Shining layers of steel–filed to razor-sharp edges–glided out in an arc to create a spectacular pair of fans. Fate had always dreamed of having such creations in her possession, ever since she had seen Katana wielding them in _Mortal Kombat_. Even the black tassels dangling from the handles made the metal fans look more aesthetic.

"Well, this is kind of boring me now," Fate sighed, making the fans disappear in a gust of wind. She had exhausted herself in her pursuit of realizing the extent of her powers. The scope of which only included various healing techniques, locating auras, and creating her weapons. She hadn't even managed to figure out how to teleport, if she even could . . . .

"Wonder if Taruto's in his room?" she asked casually to herself. She had no desire for sleep, having done so much of it the day before. Energy had barreled into her for the past hour, leaving her bouncing off the walls for, no doubt, the whole night.

Bouncing off the black covers of her four-poster bed, Fate landed softly on the thick carpet of the floor. She silently made her way to the closed door of her room, knowing that Lock sat at guard on the other side of the dark wood. The door didn't even creak as she opened it as slowly as possible. Peeking out, Fate's blue eyes spotted the still form of her wolf-guard lying prone to one side of the hall, spear gone. She cocked her head, wondering where the weapon had disappeared to. Thinking about her own metal fans, Fate would have to guess it was a similar trick with him. She eased out of the slight crack she had made, thin body slipping through easily enough. Lock didn't move even a muscle. It was then that Fate caught the steady breathing coming from him. She let out a sigh, realizing that the wolf had fallen asleep. Probably a light sleep, but a sleep, nonetheless. All the better for her.

Bare feet moving soundlessly over the cold tiles of the ship's narrow hallway, Fate reached a hand out for the crimson-colored door to Taruto's room. She wasn't too certain, as of yet, whether she was lucky that his room was across from hers or simply cursed. On the one hand, she didn't have to chance the other two–Pai and Kishu–from discovering her up and about when they thought she was sleeping. But on the other hand, Lock napped only a few feet away, and had lightning-fast reflexes. He _was_ a wolf after all . . . .

Fate decided that slipping through Taruto's door was a better move than risking being spotted by Lock (and, by effect, alerting Pai and Kishu). He had left his door cracked open so it wasn't exactly an invasion of privacy. She held her breath, pushing on the red wood of the door so that it swung inward a bit more to create a space big enough that she could slip through. She failed to notice the glint of gold in the dark of the hallway as she glided through the gap and into Taruto's room.

* * *

"Ah!" a red-head cried as she ducked to avoid yet _another_ arrow aimed directly at her. "Will you quit that!" Jen/Cherri cried as she popped her head out from behind the rock Pudding had put up as a precaution. They had been training for what seemed like hours. The sun had already gone down, but Ryo wouldn't let them stop until Cherri got her mirror to work again. "Why do you even need to see it again?" she asked before dropping back to the grass as Ichigo's strawberry bell attack hit the space her head had just been occupying a second ago.

Ryo glared at the rocky protrusion where Cherri was cowering, expression growing cross. He had long ago given up on the reasons as to why the new mew continued to make herself a target by popping her head out from behind the barrier. He narrowed his blue-green eyes, thoughts going back to the strange force hurtling from Cherri's mirror. When he had first seen it, he had immediately envisioned mew aqua. If that was indeed what it had been . . . . Well then, they had it in their possession. Ryo had to get it before Cherri decided to hand it over to her dear sister and the aliens. Of course, it would help if the girl had more control over her new-found powers. As of yet, she hadn't managed to pull the trick out again. She was definitely different from the other mews, since she could transform fully without the help of the pendant. Ryo sighed and pressed two fingers to his aching temples.

"I've already told you: I have to see it again," he explained bluntly to the fox who had popped her head out again. This time, she had red fox ears poking through her red-orange hair. She had to duck again when Lettuce decided to maneuver the next wave of attacks.

Keiichiro came to the rescue at that moment, carrying a tray of tasty-looking cupcakes. He had a grin plastered on his attractive face as all the girls immediately turned to him at the scent of sugar. "I brought treats for everyone!" he announced, holding up the tray to emphasize his words. Everyone but Zakuro, Ryo, and Cherri came rushing over to the young chef.

"Well, I suppose we could call it quits for tonight," Ryo remarked, knowing this was Keiichiro's unique way of rescuing the girls from his training exercises. "Okay, Cherri, you can come out now!" he called out to the young red-head who still cowered behind Pudding's rock protrusion. An eyebrow rose when a white flag appeared over the stony outgrowth instead, waving in submission. He rolled his eyes at the dramatics of the mews newest recruit before walking back into the cake shop with Keiichiro while the other mews left for their homes, cupcakes in hand.

"Buh-bye, Cherri-oneesama!" Pudding waved to the girl who had just now stepped out from behind the stone pillar. The blonde grinned and bounced over when Cherri waved at her. "Is something wrong, na no da?" she looked up at her elder with curious brown eyes.

Cherri grinned appreciatively down at the younger girl, happy that she could get a moment alone with the little monkey. She ran a hand through her hair which had returned to its original black color. "No, Pudding-chan. I was just wondering if I could sleep at your house tonight. I need a time out from Ryo's antics." She held her breath, holding her hands out in front of her in prayer-fashion. Cherri had no desire to go inside the cake shop. She had already asked Keiichiro if she could spend a night somewhere else. He had gotten a curious look in his eyes but hadn't questioned her motives. Fortunately, he had ended up saying "yes". It was just that Ryo had managed to get under her skin and she knew–she just knew–that he would be waiting for her right inside the door, all set with some demeaning job for her to do. Cherri/Jen hated taking orders from anyone other than her twin, Fate. Even their own parents couldn't get her to obey them unless Fate told her to first. She had only helped out at the restaurant because they had helped her the night before . . . to find Fate. It was her way of paying them back.

"Sure, you can, na no da!" Pudding exclaimed excitedly, smiling up at the brunette. "I need to take care of my siblings, na no da. That won't be a problem, will it?" The young girl motioned for Cherri to follow her as she took off running. When Cherri managed to catch up with her, she turned her head to look at her. "I make a good dinner, too, na no da!"

Cherri laughed at the silly smile the blonde tossed her way, a weird feeling turning in the pit of her stomach. Something interesting was going to happen tonight. She just knew it.

* * *

"Taruto?" Fate whispered into the dark room after she had closed the door. "Are you in here, Taruto-chan?" Her sapphire eyes scanned the room as she searched for the young alien. Nothing but a scattering of clothes and some furniture (including a four-poster bed) met her searching gaze. She moved further into the room, curiosity getting the better of her. A pile of crumpled papers lay in the center of the room. One in particular caught her eye since it was the only one _not _crunched up.

"What have you been doing, Taruto?" Fate asked aloud, picking up the note. She read the first line and her eyebrows shot up to her hairline. After reading the rest of the letter, a glint of mischief lit in her blue eyes. She whistled appreciatively, forgetting that she was trying to be inconspicuous. Folding the letter to a small square, Fate slipped it into her black jean's pocket. The prospect of using it as blackmail was too great to pass up.

"What are you doing in here?" a boy's voice asked from right behind her.

Fate jumped and spun around, heart racing. A blur of green, brown, and gold registered in her brain before she lost her balance and fell. Her back crashed to the floor, scattering the discarded wads of paper. Something followed her down because, the next thing she knew, a heavy weight pinned her to the ground.

"Such a naughty girl you are, Fate-chan," Kishu's sweet voice whispered tantalizingly into her ear. Fate froze when she recognized his voice, knowing full well that she was in trouble.

"If you wanted company, you could have called for me," the green-haired alien continued. He burrowed his face into Fate's neck, enjoying the way her body trembled against him. It was so much fun toying with his flower. He didn't know how he could have survived before he had found her. Ichigo had never brought him this much joy . . . .

"You're thinking about Ichigo?" Fate asked vaguely. She shut her mouth as soon as the words left her lips. She hadn't meant to say that out loud. As Kishu raised his head to look at her, she turned away from him. She couldn't look him in the eye now. Jealousy churned in the pit of her stomach for some reason. Even if he had a few fleeting thoughts of the cat mew mew, he had chosen _her_. He had, hadn't he? An unbidden thought entered her head. What if he was just playing her? In the series, he had been madly in love with Ichigo Momomiya. Why would that change so suddenly? Fate had developed a crush on him from the moment she had seen him. _Tokyo Mew Mew_ had been the first animé she had ever seen. Although she hadn't realized it at the time, every animé bishounen she had fallen for afterwards had always resembled the sharp-witted Cyniclon. Maybe she had mistaken his love for simple affection or even desperation . . . .

"Fate-chan?" Kishu tried to get the girl's attention, seeing as how Fate's eyes had glazed over as if her thoughts were elsewhere. Smirking when he saw an opening, Kishu leaned closer to Fate's face. His lips touched hers, successfully waking the girl from her dreamland. Instead of pulling back now that he had achieved his initial objective, Kishu took the kiss deeper like he had done that morning. His mind buzzed with her confused and depressing thoughts. He was going to make sure that each and every one of those notions was erased by the time he finished with her.

_'Kishu?'_ Fate spoke timidly in her mind, trying to ask what he was doing. Unfortunately, the kiss was turning her brain to mush and she could no longer think straight. Oh, Goddess! She couldn't think at all!

Kishu finally decided that it had been long enough. He could hear his flower's thoughts whirling with confidence and love. Maybe now she'd realize that he had eyes only for her. Pulling back, he panted to catch his breath and looked her in the eye. _'Yes?'_ he decided mind-speaking was a good idea, considering they were both breathless. Maybe he should start thinking before he acted, ne? Nah. That wouldn't be any fun.

_'Why?'_ she asked him simply. At his puzzled look, Fate settled on inputting more detail for Kishu's benefit (and her own, since she didn't really know what she was even asking). _'Why did you . . .' _she trailed off, unable to say "want to erase my jealousy of Ichigo". Fate didn't feel like making a fool of herself in Kishu's eyes just yet so, instead, she finished with, _'kiss me?' _She glanced up at Kishu, recognizing that spark of understanding in his eyes. How, after two nights only, she could pinpoint certain characteristics of him already, she had no idea. Her cheeks heated up at the look he was giving her, and Fate had to move her eyes elsewhere. All the while, her thoughts went something like this: _'I'm not Mary-Sue! I'm not Mary-Sue! Ah! I'm Mary-Sue!' _Several fanfictions depicting the ditzy, lovesick character flashed through her mind, making her blush more. She didn't want to so much as resemble the infamous Mary-Sue, but, here she was, head-over-heels in love with the green-haired Cyniclon.

"Because I love you, Fate-chan!" Kishu answered her earlier question, a grin on his face.

Fate returned her full attention to him, completely amazed with how quickly he had admitted that he loved her. _'He's really _not_ shy at all, is he?' _she thought silently to herself, a sweatdrop falling down the back of her head.

"Nope," Kishu verified her musings, easily intercepting it. Apparently, she wasn't as closed-minded as she had thought . . . .

Fate pushed weakly at the alien's chest, blushing madly. "Um . . . really?" she said pathetically. How was she supposed to say "I love you, too"? She never had been good with people. Translation: she had never formed any certain of relationship with _anyone_ other than her sister, meaning she had _never_ had a boyfriend before.

"Yep. Not shy at all," Kishu stated, mistaking her "really?" for what he had said last. "What's the point in holding in your feelings?" He shrugged his shoulders as if he didn't even know. "As I always say: if you want it, take it!" His grin grew wider as he remained sitting atop Fate's prone body. Fate knew that he had felt her trying to squirm her way out from under him, but, judging by the self-satisfied smirk he was currently giving her, he saw it as some form of entertainment. Entertainment for him, at least.

"You always say that?" Fate asked him, one silver eyebrow raised. She had propped herself up on her elbows so that she could, at least, have _some _dignity. Other than that, she had pretty much given up on trying to get him off her. He was too strong, and her body was far too weak even for human standards.

"Well, maybe not _always_." He poked at his lower lip in thought with one clawed finger. When he noticed Fate watching him, he stopped. "What?"

Fate's blue eyes widened when she realized that she had been staring. The blush that had faded to a light pink, now returned full-force. She probably resembled a ripe tomato right about now. "Er. Nothing. You just look. Um." She didn't know how to say it. She clenched her eyes shut, acutely feeling Kishu's eyes on her.

"How do I look?" Kishu asked curiously. His caramel-colored eyes focused on the red blush staining his white flower's cheeks. A smirk pulled at the corners of his mouth, but he tried to resist the urge to smile. He wanted to know what she was about to tell him. And, in past experiences with the female gender, she would refuse to tell him if he laughed at her.

"Well, you look kinda . . . cattish," she finished weakly, peeking from beneath pale eyelashes. It was true. Besides Kishu's lithe body and abnormally-large ears, he had long, sharp canines that resembled fangs and his fingernails looked about as deadly and as sharp as a cat's claws. All in all, you could say that he even looked demonic along with feline.

Kishu's eyebrows rose up a fraction at the comment. He hadn't expected those words to come from her mouth. His head cocked to the side as he thought about what she had said. Images of the cats he had seen on Earth shuffled through his brain. House cats, tigers, lions, etc. He didn't see any resemblance between him and the furry critters, but Fate was an Earthling so maybe she knew more about cats than he did. Surprisingly, Ichigo in her mew form never came to mind. He shook his head as he came back to reality. "Well, I don't see any similarities," he mumbled under his breath. His eyes went down to the girl who still lay trapped beneath him. He smirked. "You look like one of those fallen angels humans always talk about though," he announced, admiring the way her white hair contrasted so sharply with the dark carpet of Taruto's room. He noticed that she still had it up in his braid and he smiled. "So, what were you doing in here, anyway?" he asked, refusing to budge from his comfortable position when Fate pushed again at his chest.

Fate huffed and rose her arms above her head, stretching full-length on the floor. She didn't care that Kishu was staring at her, wide-eyed as she did. "I wanted to pass the time by talking with Taruto," she half-lied. In truth, she had planned to ask the young alien to transport her to Café Mew Mew so she could see her sister since her last visit had been rather short-lived. "I'm not sleepy." The words slipped past her lips before she realized it. Blue eyes flicked up at a thoughtful-looking Kishu, curious as to what he would say to that.

"Really?" he mumbled, rubbing his chin between his forefinger and thumb. His fangs flashed as he suddenly grinned, making Fate squirm even more beneath him. "Well, then let's go find him!" he cried, grabbing onto her shoulders and teleporting away.

"Kishu!" Fate gasped out, feeling the unnaturally-cool air of the air _in-between_ (her word for the area between teleportations). Her eyes caught sight of Lock entering the vortex with them. Kishu saw him, too, and, judging by the grimace on his face, wasn't too happy about the unexpected passenger. "Alright, fine," Fate sighed, hugging a surprised Kishu's middle as she gave in to his games. It wouldn't hurt her to start having a little more fun, after all . . . .

* * *

"Welcome home, onee-chan!" five young children chorused as Pudding and Cherri stepped through the door to Pudding's home.

"Hi, everyone!" the eight-year-old greeted her younger siblings with a smile on her face. "I brought a friend to stay the night, na no da," Pudding presented the black-haired girl with a wave of her hand. "This is Cherri!" The two of them had decided on the way there that "Cherri" would be Jen's name from now on. Jen didn't really mind it, and thought it would be a nice change. She had an easy-going nature after all.

Pudding's siblings stared up at the stranger for a few seconds before gathering around her with billions of questions bubbling to their lips. Cherri's eyes widened at the sudden mob at her knees, but didn't panic. Apparently she loved children. Fate being her only sibling and all, Cherri had never had much experience with small kids. "Um, so what are all your names?" Even though she doubted any of their names would really stick, she figured she ought to be polite.

"HeiCha, HanaCha, HonCha, Lucha, and ChinCha," Pudding pointed first to the girl then to all four boys as she listed off their names. She turned to Cherri and beamed, obviously proud of her little family.

"Hello, everyone!" Cherri greeted, mimicking Pudding from earlier. She didn't know how else to respond.

Pudding glanced up at the clock on the wall. Her golden eyes widened at how late it was getting. It looked like she wouldn't get done with even half of the chores she normally did every evening. A disappointed sigh escaped her, catching Cherri's attention.

"Something wrong, Pudding-chan?" the teenager asked, black hair cascading down her back as she picked up HeiCha who looked sleepy enough to collapse. She followed Pudding's eyes to the clock and it clicked. "You have stuff to do before bed, I take it?" she phrased it as a question but already knew the answer. At the young girl's nod, Cherri grinned encouragingly. She hefted HeiCha into a one-armed hold while she brought her other hand up in front of her face. "Then just tell me what needs to be done and I'll do my best!" Cherri fisted her hand in a symbol of determination, a fire burning in her green eyes.

"You don't need to, na no da," Pudding tried to talk her out of it. She wasn't used to accepting help from others. Even when she was sick that one time, she played healthy when the other mew mews tried to help her out at home. Not that she was stuck up or anything, she just didn't want to fail her deceased mother's expectations.

"Nonsense, Pudding," Cherri knelt down next to the young blond and looked her in the eye. "I _want_ to help you out. It's not shameful to accept charity every now and then, you know, especially when it's given freely." Not moving from her spot, Cherri waited for Pudding to accept her help.

"Um . . . okay, Cherri-oneesama," Pudding mumbled in a downtrodden way. It was quite out of character for her. Fortunately, the OCness lasted only a moment. A blissful sensation overcame the acrobat suddenly as she realized how quickly two people would be able to get all the housework finished. "Let's do it, na no da!" Pudding cheered, jabbing her fist into the air. Her younger siblings followed suit, also cheering even though they didn't really know what for.

"That's my girl!" Cherri applauded, laughing as she got to her feet. HeiCha had fallen asleep in her arms, her head lolled on her shoulder. "Let's get to work everyone!"

"Yeah!"

**.::2 hours later::.**

"So . . ." Cherri started tiredly, clutching the island counter in the kitchen for dear life. "We all done, now?" She looked around with exhausted eyes. The thought of a battle scene came to mind as her green eyes passed over the sleeping bodies of Pudding's little brothers. "Crap," Cherri whined, her forehead smacking the shining surface of the counter as she realized that she would have to carry the kids to their beds.

Pudding came into the room, still as energetic as ever. "All done, na no da! Thanks for the help, Cherri-oneesama!"

"How are you _not _tired?" Cherri asked incredulously, eyes wide as she watched Pudding jump up and down.

Pudding stopped bouncing in place, but did not answer. Instead, her gold-brown eyes widened at the sight of something behind Cherri. Cherri cocked her head, at first, but noticed where the girl was staring at. The black-haired teen looked over her shoulder and her mouth dropped open in astonishment.

"Hey, Pudding!" Taruto greeted with a smile and a wave. "Do you want to–who's this?" he cut himself off when he finally noticed Cherri leaning over the kitchen counter. His golden eyes narrowed in realization and he snorted his disapproval. "You're Fate-chan's sister, right? You don't look much alike," he added the last part in an undertone but Cherri caught it anyway.

_'That's funny,'_ she thought to herself. _'People _always_ say how much we look alike. I mean besides our hair and eye color.'_ She reached back and pulled her hair out of the ponytail she had done it up in during the housework. The cool stone of the countertop refreshed her a bit as she brought her arms up to rest on it and leaned back tiredly. "My name's Jen, er, I mean, 'Cherri'," she quickly corrected herself, making a mental note to tell her sister later about the unexpected name change. If the name "Jen" kept being tossed around willy-nilly than she'd never get used to her new name and identity.

The air in the little kitchen grew taut with roiling emotions as Taruto and Cherri stared each other down. Taruto broke eye contact first when he rolled his eyes in exasperation. "Alright, _Cherri_. If you're anything like Fate, then I guess I can tolerate ya."

The high-and-mighty quality of his voice didn't really bother Cherri like it would the average person. She simply smiled in amusement, not bothering to hide her girlish giggles at how cute the young alien looked with his nose in the air.

"Hey! What are you laughing at?" Taruto demanded, a blush staining his pale cheeks. The cold tile of the floor dimly registered in his brain as he took an automatic step back, raising his arms in front of him in a defensive manner. He stole a quick glance at Pudding and noticed that she was smiling at him. The red tinge on his face grew a hundred times darker.

"What are you doing here, Taruto-kun?" Pudding asked innocently, staring into his golden eyes with her own. Being so young (mew or not), she didn't think that the aliens would be up to anything. Especially when one just popped into her kitchen and said "what's up?". It was strange–for the past two days, the mews had noticed that the aliens haven't concocted any evil strategies . . . yet.

Taruto was rendered speechless and didn't know what to say. He opened and closed his mouth several times, but no sound came out. His jaw tightened as he gritted his teeth. After all that time he had spent practicing on what he would say, he couldn't even utter a word when the time actually came! His musings were rudely interrupted by the ring of a cell phone. He looked around wildly, searching for the source of the cheery tune.

Pudding also glanced around for a moment before a spark of realization lit her face. She dug around in her pants' pockets, trying to find the small device that Zakuro had given her in case of emergencies. "Gotcha!" she exclaimed triumphantly, holding up a bright-yellow cell phone with a monkey keychain attached to the top.

"How 'bout you answer it?" Cherri reminded the hyperactive girl, struggling not to appear as anxious as she felt. Man, she hated intermissions in the middle of a good romance scene! Whoever was calling had crappy timing!

"Moshi-moshi!" Pudding greeted politely as she put the phone to her ear. "Ah! Zakuro-oneesama!"

_'Well,'_ Cherri thought to herself, _'that answered the question as to who has crappy timing . . . .'_ She leaned her head back in boredom, but kept her ears open to eavesdrop on the rest of the conversation. Unfortunately, Zakuro's side of the exchange didn't make its way to her human ears so she settled for Pudding's words instead. She made a game out of guessing what the topic of the talk was about.

"Masha-chan sensed something in the park, na no da?" Pudding asked into the mouthpiece. Confusion and a fleeting look of disappointment made their way into her golden eyes. She peeked at Taruto from the corner of her eyes. The young boy didn't see the quick glance, but Cherri did.

_'Hmm. Interesting.'_ Cherri would have to take this promising situation up a few notches.

"Alright," Pudding sighed into the phone, sounding about as exhausted as Cherri had felt a few minutes ago. "Cherri-oneesama and I will be there soon, na no da . . . ." She pulled the phone away from her ear and pressed the "end call" button.

"Another chimera animal?" Cherri guessed right away. There was no way Zakuro would call otherwise on the "emergency phone". At Pudding's nod, Cherri sighed. Taruto still looked confused however. It was funny considering it was one of his buddies who had created the thing in the first place . . . .

"Where are you going?" Taruto asked Pudding directly when she grabbed her coat off the barstool where she had tossed it earlier. He looked put out, disappointment written all over his face.

"Just out," Cherri intercepted before Pudding could answer. "We'll be back soon, Taruto-chan, so make yourself at home!" Pulling Pudding by the arm, Cherri ran out the door before Taruto could get out another word.

"Um, okay?" the alien said uncertainly, taking a seat on one of the kitchen stools. He stared out the window as he waited for the girls' return. His thoughts circled around a certain golden-haired, monkey-infused acrobat as he watched the dark landscape outside Pudding's home. "Just get back soon . . . ." he sighed, impatient to get his feelings out in the open at long last.

* * *

"Oh, you're not calling it quits already, are you?" Kishu chided the mew mews. His newest chimera animal (which looked an awful lot like a werewolf) drew back from his latest attack. Its silky, brown fur glistened in the light of the moon. At the sight of the wolf's gleaming, yellow eyes, Kishu's own golden gaze flicked back to the dense woods behind him. He had left Fate and her loyal "pet" back in the concealing foliage, trying to keep his flower safe from harm. _'These dense animal-girls wouldn't hesitate in killing her on sight,'_ he said the words in his head, repeating what he had warned Fate of just moments before. At the unwanted thought, a simmering anger built up in his chest, and he brought his attention back to the battle at hand. He wouldn't allow any of these vermin to get near his precious Fate–a girl whom he loved more than anything, and who actually _returned_ those feelings. He wouldn't even let his previous crush on Ichigo get in his way . . . .

"We're not finished yet!" Mint roared up at him, determination burning in her own blue eyes. "You Cyniclons won't take over Earth! Ever!" As she said the heated words, her body glowed with a blue light. She lifted her hands up to the heavens, summoning her weapon. "Mint Arrow!"

"Well, that can't be good," Cherri commented under her breath, glancing over at Kishu who had yet to realize the danger he had put himself in. The fox mew knew how much her twin loved the green-haired alien, even if she wouldn't admit it . . . . Cherri wasn't about to take away the only bit of happiness her sibling had found. Besides, she honestly didn't think the aliens were all that bad. Sure, she couldn't let them destroy the entire human race and all that, but all they really wanted was a home to call their own. One that _was_ life-sustaining for a change . . . .

A red glow shrouded Cherri's body as she rose her own arms to the stars. Her eyes closed as the words reverberated in the dark recesses of her mind. "Ribbon Cherry Wave!" her usually-soft voice shouted. The mirror in her hands–instead of shooting out a rainbow, like before–emitted red rays of light. Her attack managed to knock Mint's off-course, as was the initial plan. What Cherri hadn't counted on were two things: first, Mint's arrow getting swallowed up by Cherri's new attack which turned the ruby-red light to a deep purple color; and second, Kishu leaping out of the way so that her attack missed him by a mile. She released a sigh of relief at the second matter. In her hurry to counter Mint's attack, Cherri had forgotten that her sister's boyfriend still stood in the way.

"Ah!" Screams rose into the night air. One came from the muzzle of the chimera animal as he dissipated in the scarlet light of Cherri's attack. The other sounded oddly human. A terrified human . . . .

"Retrieved!" Masha cried as he gulped down the jellyfish-like infuser. He paid no heed to the six mews as they ran forward and to the body of a boy. A boy who had been standing right behind the chimera animal, hiding behind a tree.

Zakuro knelt next to his still form, brushing away sandy-blond hair as something caught her eye. A purple mark glowed faintly beneath her fingertips. Her violet eyes narrowed in thought.

"Is he okay?" Pudding's voice knocked her back to reality.

Zakuro nodded. "He is," she answered, eyes moving to where his chest still rose and fell regularly. "But I'm not too sure about Jen once Ryo finds out that she turned him into a mew." The supermodel/superstar preferred using Cherri's given name rather than Ryo's mew nickname. She didn't care that it confused other people, especially the customers.

"Wait, what?" Cherri said intelligently, face completely blank.

"Well, we better get back to Ryo with this," Ichigo declared, sighing. She so didn't want to see the bossy manager, but didn't have much choice. Saving the world was far more important than avoiding an argument with the blond-haired, blue-eyed Ryo. Noticing Pudding hanging back, she stopped. "What's wrong, Pudding?" Her pink eyes watched the blond girl as she fiddled with her monkey tail. It just occurred to Ichigo that none of them had changed back to human form yet.

"Well, um, I . . . Uh," she fumbled over her words, not sure how to tell her friends about her unique situation back home. She peeked up at Cherri with a pleading, lost look in her eyes.

"Pudding and I have to get back to her siblings," Cherri fibbed, knowing the children were already asleep in their beds. "The boy won't wake up 'til tomorrow morning anyway, right? And there's nothing more we can do so, goodnight!" And with that said, Cherri grabbed Pudding's wrist and dashed off into the night before any of the others could stop her.

"That was strange," Mint commented as she narrowed her eyes at the grove of trees that Cherri and Pudding had disappeared into.

"Hm. Yes, it is," Kishu agreed with the bird-infused mew. A tree hid him from their view as he continued to spy on his enemies. Because of his intense focus on them, he wasn't prepared for the sudden light tug on his right ear. If he hadn't been so diligently trained by his superiors, then he would have given away his position with a surprised shriek. Fortunately, all he managed to get out was a foot-high jump and his back painfully colliding with the trunk of the tree. As he cursed under his breath and nursed his injured spine (and pride), Kishu looked up to see a rather amused-looking Fate standing before him. "What the hell was that for?!" he hissed at her, glowering. He didn't get the response he had wanted. She giggled at his glare.

"Sorry," Fate started, sapphire eyes drifting back to his over-sized ears. "I just wanted to touch them. I couldn't help it." A nervous smile pulled at her lips. She knew the excuse was as weak as a sapling in a typhoon, but no better explanations came to mind. The sudden urge to tug at the unusual appendages had come over her, and, naturally, she obeyed. An image of Kagome from _InuYasha_ came into her mind. The Japanese schoolgirl had done the same thing with InuYasha's white dog ears. Now Fate knew how she had felt. She sighed.

"Well, don't do that again," Kishu told her, rubbing his abused appendage. "They're sensitive, you know." The moment he said it, he wished he could take it back. His golden eyes caught the mischievous look on Fate's face, and his stomach did a series of somersaults. "Er. Let's go back to the ship," he quickly changed the subject. Kishu was uncomfortable with being the victim of sexual harassment. Normally it was him doing the harassing so when Fate had that sadistic gleam in her eye at what he had just confessed, he knew she was going to try something sensual. Half of him couldn't wait for the girl to follow through with whatever plan she was cooking up for him, but the other–more dominant–half wanted to be on top.

_'On top,'_ Kishu repeated, graphic images suddenly popping into his head. He blushed a deep red even as he wrapped his arms around Fate to teleport back to the ship. _'Maybe Pai's right: I should get a hobby.'_


	7. Settling Differences

_Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew_. Jen, Fate, and Lock all belong to me. WereMewKane owns Mathew Kane. Kaonie Kitari is owned by XxMichyBabyxX. Nor do I own the song _Some Hearts_ by Carrie Underwood._

_Crimson: Sorry about not including the two new characters in the last chapter. Well, _someone_ showed up briefly . . . . They'll be in chapter 8 big time. Please, Read on!_

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**Chapter Seven­–**

**Settling Differences**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

"But I want to see my onee-chan!" Cherri practically screamed at the young alien. Her hands curled into fists, nails digging into the skin of her palm.

"And _I _said 'you can't'!" Taruto shot right back. His golden eyes held anger and irritation; all of which was directed at the pleading fox mew.

Pudding glanced from one to the other, standing still on the doorstep of her Chinese-styled home. The two had been at it for half an hour already. The eight-year-old was just beginning to wonder when it would finally end when she had a brilliant idea. With a mischievous glint in her eye, Pudding walked between the two combatants. Taruto and Cherri immediately shut up and watched her turn to face the alien.

"Taruto-chan," she injected a fake whine into her voice, knowing that she had hooked him when the brown-haired boy looked suddenly nervous. "Can't Cherri-oneesama come with us, na no da? She won't say anything to the others, na no da. Please?" She put on her best puppy-dog face and begged with her eyes.

"Er. Well," Taruto stumbled before finally sighing and covering his face with a hand in defeat. "Fine." Pudding and Cherri cheered, hugging each other in victory. "But _don't_ let Pai see you!" he warned the two seriously, his eyes focusing on Cherri.

Cherri pouted at him, wondering why he was looking at _her_ when he said that. Jeesh, she wasn't _that_ talented at attracting trouble, was she?

"Let's just get going already, 'kay?" Taruto said, not waiting for a response as he reluctantly grabbed Cherri's hand before hesitantly winding his fingers around Pudding's. He teleported to the ship, very aware of Pudding's grip as she tightened her hold on his hand. He suddenly found himself wanting to hug her to him, like he had seen Kishu do with Fate, but he just got a tighter reign on his emotions instead. "We're here," he announced, glad that Pudding had her eyes squeezed shut because he could feel his face getting very warm. He turned his face away before she could catch sight of his blush when she opened her eyes to take a look around.

"So cool, na no da!" Pudding exclaimed, releasing Taruto's hand to bounce over to a series of computer screens hanging on one wall. She made sure not to touch anything, but it was growing more difficult by the minute as more interesting things popped up in her search of the ship's main room.

"Is this what they call 'the bridge'?" Cherri asked dumbly, stepping away from Taruto as she, too, examined the expansive area. At the silence that followed her question, she looked behind her and grinned. Taruto had obviously not heard her. His golden gaze focused solely on the little monkey zipping through the room. She briefly wondered if he even realized he was staring . . . .

"Taruto, what are you doing?" a faintly familiar voice issued from behind Cherri. She whirled around only to face a black-clothed chest. Tilting her head back, she saw a marble-white face with wine-colored eyes. The man's purple hair was tied off to one side of his face. Kind of an odd fashion statement but, for some reason, it actually worked for him. His abnormally-large (well, abnormal for a human) ears were the last things Cherri noticed. And a few seconds later had her putting it all together: this was the third alien. She suddenly realized that she had seen him before–that first night when she had searched for her sister. Wait, hadn't that just been last night? Talk about a long week!

"Who is this?" Pai asked the younger alien, staring down at the girl in front of him. His violet eyes traveled over her trim form, lingering for just a few seconds at the sight of her bare legs which the nightdress she wore revealed. Her thick, black hair fell in waves over her shoulders, blue highlights flashing in the gentle glow of the ship's overhead lights. Expressive, emerald-green eyes gawked up at him. She seemed familiar to him–her presence pulling at a recent memory–but he couldn't place her.

"Um . . ." Taruto was at a loss for words. He hadn't expected Pai to be awake at this hour so the boy hadn't come up with any excuse (lame or not) as to why Pudding and Cherri were here. Thankfully, he didn't need to seeing as how Fate and Kishu had chosen that precise moment to enter the room.

"Jen?" Fate stopped dead in her tracks when her blue eyes caught sight of her twin. She blinked a few times, not sure if she should believe what she was seeing. After a few blinks and rubs, and the images still not going away, Fate yipped and rushed over to the black-haired girl. "Oh! I have so much to tell you!" she breathed into her sister's ear as she hugged her as hard as she could. Happiness swelled in her chest until she thought it would explode. Her white hair, now loose from its braid (thanks to Kishu), swung around the pair. She didn't even bother to pull it back. "It's okay for them to stay here tonight, ne?" Fate asked the purple-haired man, looking imploringly up at him. She smiled and hugged her cheering sister again when Pai nodded at her in defeat.

Kishu, meanwhile, tried to ignore the twinge of jealousy he felt as his flower clung to someone else and _not _to him. His eyes burned holes in Cherri's forehead, sending her a very-clear message: "Leave her alone, or else!". Cherri, of course, either didn't get it or didn't care because she completely disregarded his glaring.

"You're acting a lot like me, Fate-chan!" Cherri pointed out, immediately earning her a bonk on the crown of her head. She rubbed the tender spot with one hand as she held her abusive sister with the other.

"It's like looking into a mirror," Pudding and Taruto commented in unison. Both looked at each other and laughed after they realized that they had said the exact same words at the exact same time.

Kishu and Pai stared at the two siblings, also beginning to see the same thing. The two girls acted a _lot_ alike, even if it wasn't all the time.

"So?" Cherri countered happily, a grin on her face. "We're twins! We're _supposed_ to be alike. One mind in two bodies, sharing a deeper meaning to life than anyone else in the world! We–" She was cut off by another hit to the cranium. "Ow," she whined, cradling her aching head with both hands this time. Fate wiped her hands together as if she had just finished some job.

Pai, Pudding, Taruto, and Kishu all grimaced. All four wondered how many whacks to the head the drama-queen had suffered in her thirteen years. And how she could still _think_ after having been subjected to so many. . . .

"You know, Jen," Fate started, feeling better after reverting to her old self. "You really should go into acting with all that melodrama you constantly spout."

Cherri looked shell-shocked at the mere mention of acting as a career. "What?! And abandon my duty as the world's most amazing gymnast?! Never!" she cried with a theatrical wave of her arm. She flipped her long, black hair over her shoulder, acting snob-like. Something glinted in her jade eyes as she glanced over her shoulder at Fate, adding, "But _you_ should go into the singing business. You know, I bet Zakuro-sama wouldn't mind taking you under her wing!" Excitement started rushing through the girl again and she jumped up and down like a little kid as all the ideas rushed into her head. "And–and–and. You should, like, totally get your own studio! And. Even–even. Like. Sign autographs! And become a star! Then you can take me along on your world tour! We could see Germany, Ireland, England, Paris, Japan!" She just earned herself another cuff to the side of her head, plus a hand over her mouth to shut her up.

Fate hissed into Cherri's ear to shut up, cheeks burning a bright scarlet. She even added a scream and stream of curses through their mental connection. Cherri winced at the jarring noise reverberating in her head.

"You sing?" Taruto, Kishu, and Pai all asked at once. Evil grins lit their faces, draining all the color from Fate's face.

"I want to hear it!" Kishu cried, floating over to Fate and Cherri while sitting cross-legged in the air. His fangs flashed out at them as he grinned.

"Me too, na no da!" Pudding agreed with her ex-enemy, bouncing in place with excitement. Taruto joined her in the incessant "Sing! Sing! Sing!" chorus. Even Pai had an encouraging smile on his face.

"See?" Cherri chided at Fate from beneath her sibling's fingers, adding a mental "I told you so" for effect.

Fate's face grew very hot at all the attention and goading. Her sapphire eyes skimmed the main room for something–anything–to draw the spotlight away from her. The series of computers and various gadgets along one wall jumped out at her. She would have whooped for joy if she wasn't so tightly wrapped.

"Look there, Jen!" Fate cried, pointing at the electronic gadgets that any nerd would worship. Good for her, then, that her twin sister was a techno-geek.

"Huh?" Cherri looked at the place that Fate had indicated. Her emerald-green eyes grew wide and Fate could swear that they were literally sparkling with excitement. "Sugoi," she uttered in Japanese seconds before racing over to the highly-advanced equipment. Unlike Pudding, Cherri did not know the meaning of restraint. Her fingers itched to touch and play with all the gadgets in front of them, and, naturally, she complied. Soon Pai would have his hands full with Cherri's endless stream of questions about everything there. Fate didn't have to worry about her sister screwing anything up. When it came to technology, Cherri had a knack for understanding whatever was put in front of her. If she didn't know how to use something at first, then she'd learn pretty darn quickly.

"What is she doing?" Taruto asked out loud, staring at Cherri's back as she fiddled with Pai's precious computer.

"Playing," Fate answered simply, turning her back on her twin and letting out a sigh of relief. She didn't get too long to relax, however . . . .

"So?" Kishu pushed, his previous grin transforming into a smirk. "Sing for us," he demanded. His feet landed gracefully on the smooth floor of the ship. His body was close enough for Fate to feel his warmth. He chuckled when he saw her shiver.

"No music," Fate supplied, trying to come up with a valid excuse for not being able to perform for them. That fell flat when she saw Pai holding up a music CD. Question marks appeared in the air around her head.

"I thought it would be beneficial in understanding the human culture," Pai explained, popping the disc into his computer's mainframe with one hand as he held Fate's sister back with the other. He didn't much care for strangers (or anyone, for that matter) fiddling with his belongings. In a few seconds, the melody for Carrie Underwood's _Some Hearts_ began to play. Fate got a shocked look on her face, but Pai quickly answered the unspoken question. "This artist is supposedly quite famous on Earth right now."

Fate rose one eyebrow at the violet-haired man, noticing the nearly-nonexistent blush on his cheeks. Apparently it wasn't just popular for humans right now . . . .

Someone shoved a microphone into her hands. Glancing to her left, she saw Cherri grinning at her. Before Fate could ask her where the hell she had found a microphone on an alien spacecraft, the cue to start singing came up. Automatically, her lips opened and her voice came out.

_"I've never been the kind that you'd call lucky  
Always stumbling' around in circles  
But I must have stumbled into something  
Look at me  
Am I really alone with you_

_I wake up feeling like my life's worth living  
Can't recall when I last felt that way  
Guess it must be all this love you're giving  
Never knew never knew it could be like this  
But I guess_

_Some hearts  
They just get all the right breaks  
Some hearts have the stars on their side  
Some hearts  
They just have it so easy  
Some hearts just get lucky sometimes  
Some hearts just get lucky ,lucky sometimes_

_Now who'd have thought someone like you could love me  
You're the last thing my heart expected  
Who'd have thought I'd ever find somebody  
Someone who ,someone who makes me feel like this  
Well I guess_

_Some hearts  
They just get all the right breaks  
Some hearts have the stars on their side  
Some hearts,  
They just have it so easy  
Some hearts just get lucky sometimes  
Some hearts just get lucky sometimes_

_Even hearts like mine  
Get lucky, lucky sometimes  
Even Hearts like mine_

_oooooooooooh oh_

_Some hearts  
They just get all the right breaks  
Some hearts have the stars on their side  
Some hearts,  
They just have it so easy  
Some hearts just get lucky sometimes  
Some hearts  
They just get all the right breaks  
Some hearts have the stars on their side  
Some hearts,  
They just have it so easy  
Some hearts just get lucky sometimes  
Some hearts just get lucky sometimes"_

As she finished the last line of the upbeat song, Fate could see the huge grin on Kishu's face. A bright shade of red had already colored her cheeks when she had sang the first few lines. Now the crimson blush spread over the rest of her face. She tried to push the feeling back but couldn't stop her heart from beating so fast. Fate had felt completely in sync with the music, singing her heart out. The words "I love you" had practically come screaming from her throat, and Kishu had heard it. How embarrassing . . . .

"Wow! You're so good, na no da!" Pudding was the first to praise her. She felt giddy and energized from the heartfelt music flowing from Fate's lips. The melody beating out of the computer's speakers paled in comparison to Fate's harmonious voice as she performed the words she had memorized by heart. "All you need to do is

"You should perform professionally, Fate-chan!" Kishu suggested, drowning out Pudding's constructional criticism. He had noticed Fate's eyes on him throughout most of the song and knew what she had been trying to convey to him. She had used another's words, but the meaning had still been the same. Besides, Kishu thought it was cute and rather clever how she had sang her out to him so indirectly. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and leaned in for a peck on the cheek. He was pleasantly surprised when his lips found her mouth instead as Fate turned her face towards him at that moment. The sweet taste of her strawberry-flavored chapstick left a pleasant tingle on his tongue as he flicked out to lick at her lower lip before pulling away.

"Aw! So _kawaii_!" Cherri gushed out, loving how cute the couple looked. Her eyes inadvertently glanced at the tall alien standing at her right shoulder. She quickly turned away in embarrassment when he caught her looking at him. "Um, it's past midnight, right?" she commented, trying to get her thoughts away from the purple-haired boy. "Pudding and I have to get to work early tomorrow . . . ." she trailed off, not really all that excited about having to face Ryo (who would probably be pissed about her turning that boy into a mew mew). _'Oh, that's right! I forgot I did that,'_ Cherri thought intelligently to herself.

"Where is everyone going to sleep?" Lock spoke up. No one had realized that he had walked into the room, or for that matter that he could even _talk_.

Fate cocked her head at the silver-haired boy, not really surprised at his most-recent ability. The wolf was full of secrets, and Fate was used to the supernatural being a witch and all. "Cherri and Pudding can take my room," she offered, letting out an exasperated sigh. She knew what was coming next.

"And Fate can sleep with me!" Kishu volunteered, hugging his precious girl to his chest.

Pai looked like he was going to argue with the sleeping arrangements, but Fate held up a hand. "I'm okay with it, really," she assured him, giving him a genuine smile. She ignored her sister's mental recital of the "Kishu and Fate sitting in a tree" song. She would have beat Cherri up if she wasn't being dragged off by Kishu to his room. She caught Lock's look of disapproval before she and Kishu disappeared into the hall.

"Don't do anything to her, Kishu!" Taruto's warning shout followed them into the shadowy corridor. Kishu growled at the empty threat but refrained from saying anything. Fate choked back the giggles pushing their way up her throat, wondering how she had ended up having Taruto as a father figure. Her struggle with her laughing soon became a battle to stop her yawns. She obviously lost the battle when her mouth stretched open in a long, drawn-out yawn. The next thing Fate knew, she was cradled in Kishu's arms, bridal-style.

"You look tired," Kishu explained at the questioning look Fate gave him, shrugging his shoulders. "Besides, I like carrying you." He smiled down at her, bending his knees as he kicked off from the ground. For the rest of the way down to his room, he flew so as to not jar Fate with walking. He also wanted to get to his bed as soon as possible, before Fate fell asleep on him.

"I heard that thought," Fate breathed into his ear. Fatigue clouded her better judgment as always. She reached up and nipped the lobe of his ear with her teeth, recalling how sensitive he had said they were. Whenever she stayed up too late, this was how she'd act–absolutely no modesty whatsoever.

"Wh–What are you doing, Fate-chan?" Kishu fumbled with his words, trying in vain to hold back the pleased shivers running through his body at the feeling of her lips closing over the skin of his left ear. He had to stop mid-flight as he focused solely on the things Fate was doing to him. A moan left him when Fate moved down to plant a kiss on his neck. Kishu decided that flying was taking too long so he opened a rip in the air behind him and teleported Fate to his bedroom. Dropping onto the dark-green covers of his four-poster bed, Kishu tilted his head back to give Fate more access to his neck. She complied to the request, and he soon felt her lapping at his heated skin with her tongue. Uncontrollable tremors racked his body at the ministrations. His hand's fisted in Fate's snowy hair, clinging to her as he fought to restrain himself for a few more moments. It was agonizing for Kishu to feel the desire rising within him and know that Fate was the cause of it. Agonizing in a good way, of course. He was pulled from his inner battle when Fate suddenly slumped against him. A feeling of dismay overcame him as he looked down at her.

Yep. She was asleep, breathing softly onto his bared collar bone. Kishu made a face and sighed in disappointment. "You can't do that, Fate-chan . . . ." he groaned out, running a hand through his green hair. After a moment of just sitting there with Fate still in his lap and cooling off, Kishu carefully laid Fate down on the mattress. He lay down next to her, pulling the covers over the both of them. Obviously he wasn't too terribly tired quite yet, so he simply lay there, propped up on an elbow, and watched Fate sleep. He picked up a lock of her silver hair and twirled it between his fingers, amazed with the odd coloring. He had never before seen a human with such hair coloring. Of course, he hadn't seen all of humankind yet either. Still, Fate intrigued him, and not just because of her appearance. The way her moods could change on a dime (like just a few minutes ago), her intense love for animals, and the kindness she showed for every living creature (even his kind) simply amazed him. He couldn't get enough of the girl, nor could he figure her out totally. That captivated him.

Kishu trailed a finger along Fate's jaw line, wondering if he'd be able to stay with Fate when his mission was finished. Or if he could even go through with the mission now that he had found her. He didn't know about the second part yet, but he definitely knew the answer to the first. "I'll always be by your side," he whispered in Fate's ear, kissing her forehead. He let himself drop to the bed, wrapping his arms around his flower and drawing her close to his body. The feeling of Fate hugging him in return and even snuggling up to him made him smile. Sleep lulled him into dreamland where a certain white-haired, blue-eyed girl greeted him with a gentle smile. The last thought he had was that she'd always stay by his side, too.


	8. Falling Inside the Lines

_Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew_. The OCs Fate, Jen, & Lock are mine. The OC Kaonie Kitari belongs to XxMichyBabyxX. The OC Mathew Kane belongs to WereMewKane._

_Crimson: Um . . . Kaonie and Mathew will be in this one, just so you know. This chapter will focus mainly on them._

_ READ ON!_

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**Chapter Eight–**

**Falling Inside the Lines**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

The morning sunlight hurt his eyes as Mathew opened them. He blinked away the tears from his light-brown eyes, peering into the light-filled room he had awoken in. The window he faced had lacy curtains pulled back to reveal the blue sky and a few leafy branches of some nearby tree. A few colorful, abstract pictures greeted his searching gaze as his eyes passed over the lilac-colored walls. As he sat up on the bed he was in, pushing back the white covers, Mathew caught sight of a familiar face.

"Kaonie?" he voiced the question with a scratchy tone. He grimaced, bringing a hand up to his throat to massage the soreness out of it. His sandy-blond bangs fell into his eyes and he shook his head to get it back in place.

"Mathew," a female's voice registered in his brain. "Are you alright?" Amethyst-colored eyes filled his vision when he looked over to his childhood friend. Curly, blond hair framed a soft face, spilling over her shoulders loosely all the way to the girl's waist. Looks like Kaonie was too lazy to put her hair up today. Mathew smiled reassuringly at her, noticing the worried look in her eyes.

"It scared the crap out of me when they brought you in last night," she whispered at him, hand over her heart to emphasize her point. "I couldn't even stomach the thought of leaving you alone to go home. So I stayed here the entire night." She waved carelessly at the cozy bedroom, sighing tiredly. A loud crash from downstairs followed by a very loud argument had both Mathew and Kaonie leaping to their feet.

"What was that?" Mathew asked shakily, weaving slightly as dizziness threatened to overcome him. He reached out a hand to steady himself on the wall.

"I don't know," Kaonie answered, as equally unsteady as her friend. Her steps were hesitant as she walked over to the door to peek out. Before she reached it, however, the white door swung inward. Kaonie jumped back in surprise, tripping over her own two feet to fall on the bed.

Keiichiro stared at the two teens in the room for a moment before smiling and offering a helping hand to Kaonie. "I'm sorry for startling you, Miss Kitari," he apologized as he helped the blond to her feet. "May I ask for the both of you to come downstairs? We have a few things needed discussing." He grinned at them again before walking out the door and down the hall.

Kaonie and Mathew stared after him, then glanced at each other.

"What now?" Mathew asked aloud, voicing the question they both were thinking.

Kaonie shrugged her shoulders hopelessly. "We go downstairs?" she suggested, pointing at the open door.

"Really?" Mathew replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes in exasperation.

Kaonie stuck out her tongue at him childishly.

* * *

"You two look dead on your feet," Zakuro remarked as Pudding and Cherri came through the door, dragging their feet. She lifted one elegant eyebrow at the unusual sloth-like movements of the young Chinese acrobat.

"Get to work, you two," Ryo ordered as he walked by, not bothering to give either of the girls a second glance. He even ignored the glare Cherri gave him.

"I'm _really_ getting irritated by him," Cherri mumbled under her breath, collapsing into a nearby chair. She groaned as her forehead hit the table's surface. "So sleepy . . . ." She and Pudding had stayed up playing Monopoly with Pai and Taruto. That game, of course, takes _forever_. In the end (at about 3 or 4 in the morning), Pai had ended up with every house, every scrap of money, and every hotel on the entire board. Damn the super geniuses of the world . . . .

Pudding walked past Cherri in a daze, heading to the kitchen where she could smell Keiichiro's cakes baking. It only took a few minutes for the monkey to suddenly pop out, energetic as ever. Apparently, sugar did wondrous things for kids . . . .

"What did you two do last night anyway?" Mint asked them as she sipped her tea, yet _again_. Did she _ever_ work?

"Stayed up late, playing a game," Cherri answered shortly, plopping her elbow on the table and cradling her chin in a hand. They didn't need to know the full truth yet. Eventually, they would have to learn who Pudding was getting married to . . . . Cherri smirked into her palm, already sifting through several schemes to get the two kids together. Man, she loved playing matchmaker!

"Where's Ichigo-oneesama, na no da?" Pudding asked the others as she looked around the cake shop at last. Cherri went into full alert at the question, also searching for the kind red-head. She didn't see her anywhere in the vicinity.

"She hasn't shown up yet," Lettuce answered as she came into the kitchen, broom in hand. "Are you okay, Cherri-san?" the green-haired girl asked when her cerulean eyes noticed the bags under her friend's eyes. "Did you not sleep well?" She dug around in her apron for a bit as Cherri waved her hands in front of her.

"Oh, no! I'm alright! Perfectly fine!" the black-haired girl tried to fend off Lettuce's worry. Her eyes widened at all the stuff her friend started pulling out of her apron's pocket. Pain medicine, orange-scented face wash, white linen bandages and even pep pills . . . .

Cherri opened and closed her mouth several times, but couldn't voice her thoughts aloud. She looked pleadingly over at Zakuro who simply smirked and turned away. A frown played over her lips, but Cherri didn't have long to pout as two unfamiliar faces made their way down the stairs. Well, one _was _familiar.

"Um. Hi," greeted the girl. Her long, blond hair hung down to her waist, wavy throughout but curling up at the ends. Amethyst eyes stared out of a somewhat-tanned face, looking nervously from one face to the next. She held her hands behind her back, shifting from one foot to the other. It was obvious to the mews that this girl had a shy nature.

The boy was even more timid than his friend. He couldn't even speak to the girls, settling for waving politely at them instead. His sandy-blond hair framed his beige-colored eyes. He tried not to be obvious as he side-stepped behind the girl. The purple mark on his forehead had paled against his tan skin overnight, but it still stood out against his skin especially for the mews who knew to look for it.

Zakuro made the first move, gliding over to the two newcomers and holding out her hand courteously. "My name is Fujiwara Zakuro. You may call me Zakuro, if you want."

Both the boy's and the girl's eyes had grown wide at the sight of the purple-haired model walking towards them. Of course, they knew who she was. One of them was a big-time fan, while the other had tried to get a job working with her.

"My n-name's Kitari Kaonie," Kaonie introduced herself in bemusement, taking the star's hand in her own. She shoved her shyness to the back of her mind, or at least as far as it would go. You only get one chance in life like this, after all! "And this is my friend, Mathew Kane. He's a big fan of yours!" She covered her mouth when she realized her slip-up. Oops! She hadn't meant to put all the attention on him. She mouthed "sorry" to Mathew as he glared at her.

"Always nice to meet a fan," Zakuro laughed, offering her hand to him next. She smiled when he hesitantly shook it. Zakuro leaned closer to the boy. "It's good to have you on our team, Mathew," she added in an undertone so only he could hear. A blush stained his cheeks, but she feigned to not notice it. She found the boy intriguing, that was for sure.

Kaonie looked from Zakuro to her friend, wondering what the girl was talking about. "Um. What 'team'?" she asked the superstar curiously. Before Zakuro (or any of the mews) could answer, a male's voice came from her left.

"The mew mews of Tokyo," Ryo answered, walking into the dining area where the girls and the newcomers were gathered. "Your friend, Mathew, is a mew mew." He cut his blue eyes at Cherri who took a step back to hide behind Lettuce. "He wasn't _meant_ to be, but something unexpected happened." He ran his fingers through his blond hair, sighing his irritation. He suddenly looked at the blond-haired girl, seriousness exuding from him. "You were looking for a job here last night, right?" He continued when he saw the girl slowly nod, "Well, considering the circumstances, you can now work here so we can keep an eye on you. We can't have people knowing about the mew project," he explained, watching Kaonie closely.

"'Mew Project'?" Mathew repeated, awestruck. Did that mean his life had been turned around at long last? Was he going to save the city from total annihilation?

"Yes," Ryo answered, turning his attention to the new mew. _'I can't believe we have a boy as a mew mew,'_ he thought silently to himself. "You were infused with an animal. I'm not sure which one yet. Your duty is to save the Earth from the aliens seeking to claim it as their own." He looked up at first one face and then the other. "Well, what do you say?"

Kaonie and Mathew turned to look at each other. Both nodded and returned their attention to the blond boy. "We're in," they said in unison, expressions completely resolute.

The other four mews smiled. No one seemed to notice that Cherri had left the room. Oh well, they'd find out what she was up to soon enough . . . .


	9. Animal Instincts

_Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew_. The OCs Fate, Jen, & Lock are mine. The OC Kaonie Kitari belongs to XxMichyBabyxX. The OC Mathew Kane belongs to WereMewKane._

_Crimson: Oooh! I had such a good idea that I couldn't wait to get this chapter out!_

_Fate: Really? What is it?_

_Kishu: Does it have me in it this time? **still upset about not being in the last chapter**_

_Crimson: To the first question: you'll have to read to find out. To Kishu's question: OF COURSE!_

_Kishu: Yay!_

_Fate: I have a bad feeling about this. **sweatdrops**_

_Crimson READ ON!_

_

* * *

  
_

**Chapter Nine–**

**Animal Instincts**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

"Hey, Pai?" Cherri addressed the purple-haired alien. She put the sweetest, most adorable tone into her voice, adding the ever-popular puppy-dog look to complete the ensemble. "May I please use your equipment for something?" Her hands automatically slapped together in prayer-fashion in front of her face as she begged and pleaded with him. Taruto had promised both Pudding and Cherri the night before to pick them up at Pudding's place after they finished work. Cherri had wanted to spend time with all the cool gadgets while Pudding had wanted to play with Taruto some more. None of them had seen heads or tails of Kishu and Fate. Considering both of them liked to sleep in a lot, it hadn't really worried anyone.

"Geez," Taruto complained from his position on top of one of the several pillars spaced throughout the room. Pudding was currently climbing up one to get to him since they were playing a game of tag. "Why do you like computers so much?"

Cherri grinned mysteriously up at him. "None of your business," she said pleasantly. Taruto sweat-dropped at the unexpected response. "So, can I? Please?" Cherri returned to her begging. She noticed the light blush tinting Pai's cheeks and felt her own heat up when she realized how close she stood to him. But she wasn't about to back down. Technology was her life! And she was on the verge of a very-interesting discovery . . .

"On one condition," Pai yielded to the black-haired girl. His hard eyes pierced her heart as he gave her a very-serious look. "You tell me what you're working on." Stupidity was one thing Pai had never possessed. He knew that Cherri's curious mind would immediately center on an invention of some sort. He knew this because of what he had seen the night before. No mere dabbler could start fiddling with the keypads on his system and gain instant access to his files. Cherri had done exactly that. The discovery of what she had done had surprised him, to say the least, but it had also impressed him. It was one of the main reasons he had not kicked the mews off their ship immediately. If they could snag two of the six mew mews, then his race could regain control of the Earth. His people would be saved . . . .

"Ano . . ." Cherri dragged out, poking her lower lip. Pai found himself too focused on the cute gesture and had to snap himself out of it. "Well, it's actually something to do with Ryo's DNA Alteration machine," she finished, holding up a small red jewel that she had hidden in her backpack. "So may I run tests on it?"

Pai's eyes widened at the precious stone resting innocently in the palm of Cherri's hand. Briefly, he wondered how on earth the girl had managed to sneak that out of the cake shop. He sighed and nodded his head, giving her access to all his equipment. The girl whooped for joy, hugged him, and ran off to play with the computers and high-tech gadgets.

"What's Jen doing?" Fate's voice came floating into the room followed soon after by Fate herself. Pai noticed with carefully-concealed curiosity that Kishu stood a few feet away from Fate and refused to even glance at the girl. His stance didn't look angry, more like restless. Fate didn't even seem to notice his strange behavior.

Fate walked over to one of the pillars and slid down to its base. Her stomach growled and she realized that she hadn't eaten yet. "Um. What time is it?" she asked aloud, trying to hide her obvious hunger by speaking over it.

Pai glanced up for a minute as if contemplating something. "12:21 p.m.," he answered her. The sound of a stomach growling loudly in hunger made its way to his sharp ears. Even Taruto and Kishu heard it. All three aliens turned their eyes to an embarrassed Fate.

"Sorry," she apologized weakly, staring at the floor. A strong grip on her chin raised her head so that she had to look Kishu in the eye.

"Hungry?" Kishu asked, smiling down at her. He saw the red coloring on Fate's cheeks and was wondering if he could get her to finish what she had started last night. Fate's sister interrupted his pleasant thoughts. A red tic appeared on his temple.

"That reminds me," Cherri exclaimed from her position by the computer. "Kaonie wants to meet you, onee-chan. Wanna eat a picnic somewhere in about five minutes?" She smiled at her twin before a loud beeping sound brought her attention back to the screen behind her.

Fate watched her work for a while, puzzled at both what she had said and what she was doing. She glanced up at Kishu, wondering if it would be okay. His breath warmed her cool skin instantly as he sighed.

"Of course! Let's all go have a picnic!" Kishu forced out between clenched teeth. He had _really_ wanted to get Fate alone for awhile, but that plan didn't seem to be working out very well. A pressure around his middle alerted him to the fact that Fate was hugging him. The realization that he'd do anything for her to be so close to him hit him full-on. He grinned like an idiot.

"Um, actually . . . ." Pudding started, climbing down the pillar that Taruto had been sitting on. Her quarry had decided to float down to the tiled floor the second she had been about to grab his foot. "I have to take my brothers and sister to their checkups at the doctor, na no da." She rubbed the back of her head nervously, a timid grin on her face.

Taruto had a disappointed look on his face for a fleeting moment, but wiped it away almost as soon as it had come. "I'll take you back!" he spoke up immediately, raising his arm in the air. Pudding laughed good-naturedly at his enthusiasm.

"Kawaii," Cherri muttered under her breath at their lovey-dovey display. No one but Pai had heard her.

"Let's go!" Cherri cried excitedly as she finished her work at the main terminal. She grabbed the gently-glowing jewel from among its nest of wires before leaping into the transportation field Pai and Kishu had opened.

**.::Ten minutes later in the woods::.**

"Cherri, nya!" Fate screeched at the top of her lungs, chasing a red fox through the halls of an abandoned shack. Her paws tangled on themselves, her not being used to having four legs. Fate fell face-first into the wooden floor. Her cat whiskers twitched and she flicked her white tail irritably. Her sister (the fox from earlier) had disappeared around a corner, running for her life. "Damn her!" Fate vented her emotions to empty air. "I can't believe her stupid project actually turned us into cats!"

They had just met Kaonie when Cherri had decided to show off her splendid new toy. None of them had even eaten yet! As usual with Cherri, trouble soon ensued, and Ryo's precious DNA Alteration crystal altered all of _their_ DNA, infusing them all with cat genes! Just like Ichigo and Ryo.

"It's not all _that_ bad," Kishu crooned into her ear as he came up beside her. His golden eyes sparkled in amusement as Fate jumped about three feet into the air. "You're quite skittish, you know that?"

Fate batted out a him with a black paw. Kishu easily dodged it.

"Fate, Kishu, Cherri!" Taruto's irritated voice easily made its way to their enhanced hearing. Before Fate could so much as open her mouth to answer, Kishu quickly grabbed her by the scruff of the neck with his teeth and hauled her outside. Fate automatically responded the way any kitten would–curl up into a ball as she was being carried somewhere.

"Kishu?! What are you doing?!" Fate demanded even though she refrained from struggling out of his grip. After last night, she was afraid to be alone with him. She may have started things, but she knew that Kishu would want to finish it . . . .

The black-furred cat didn't answer her. He simply kept running straight out of the small house and into the trees surrounding it. His strength and stamina kept him going even further than that. He didn't stop until he reached the park with the fountain in it. A lot of people were outside, startling him at how huge they all appeared to his feline eyes. He mentally shook those thoughts away, settling on the main issue instead. Opening his mouth, he gently set Fate down on the concrete of the park's plaza.

"A lot of things happen in this park, don't they?" Fate asked out of nowhere. She was starting to get tired of seeing the same old fountain spouting the same old water day after day. Ignoring Kishu's confused stare, Fate instinctively started smoothing down the white fur around her neck that Kishu had mussed up. She paused mid-lick, only just realizing what she was doing. The black bow around her neck that had appeared with her feline body waved in the air as she shook her head to rid herself of the urge to clean her dirty coat. Her tail twitched behind her again, another black bow–this time with a silver bell–was tied to the end.

"Does the princess need a bath?" Kishu laughed at her back. Fate turned to glare at him. "Let's go play," he quickly changed the subject, knowing that the she-cat would probably want to experiment with her new-found claws. His shoulder brushed against hers as he passed her, black fur glinting an odd green color in the afternoon sun. He pivoted on his hind legs, front paws in the air as he spun around playfully at her. "Come on, Fate-chan, nya!" His cheerful beckon motivated Fate to move her legs. She sprinted towards Kishu, wondering why her heart was beating so fast as they played their way across the park plaza. Laughter issued from both of them as they acted like the children they were at heart. Only the humans heard the usual meowing from a couple of kittens fooling around in the warm sun. Most of those who came upon the sight of the two smiled briefly before continuing on their way.

­­­

* * *

**.::Back with Taruto, Pai, and Kaonie::.**

Taruto was glowering at the empty hallway, his nose catching the faint scent of a long-gone Kishu and Fate. His furry, brown ears jerked this way and that on the top of his head. Gold eyes cut to his left as a gray cat came up next to him. "Now what, Pai?" he asked through clenched teeth. "Kishu grabbed Fate and took off. Even the 'super-genius' has ditched us." The "super-genius" he referred to was, of course, Cherri. However, he had said the word with such loathing that it was obvious he was being sarcastic. Big time.

"What do we do now?" a timid, feminine voice came from behind the pair. Pai and Taruto glanced back at the human-turned-cat. Amethyst eyes watched them nervously from a tan-colored face. The white patch on the female cat's forehead stood out starkly against her brownish fur, shaped in the form of a diamond. A purple bandana was tied around her neck, oddly enough it was the very one she had been wearing before she had been transformed into a cat. Kaonie's front paws shook with the effort to prevent herself from running around in circles in a panic . . . _again_. The first time she had done it–which was right after she had realized that she had been turned into a cat–she had ended up sprawled in a not-so-pleasant heap on the floor. Obviously it was going to take some time to get used to having four legs. A possibility that she was going to have to take into consideration at the rate things were going . . . .

"I'll go after Cherri," Pai volunteered, glaring at Taruto when a look of protest passed over the younger cat's features. Allowing the hot-headed youngster to pursue the fox would be like sending a rabid dog after the poor girl. Taruto, unfortunately, let his emotions rule him most of the time. Kishu did too, which was why he had taken his "flower" and had high-tailed it out of here (no pun intended) without a second thought. "You, Taruto, will accompany Kaonie to search for Kishu and Fate," he continued directly. He had made sure to use Kaonie's name politely. Making enemies with the human who was obviously close to the mews was not a wise idea. Especially when they were planning on infiltrating their little clique.

With an irritable ear-flick, Taruto snorted but motioned with his head for Kaonie to follow him. She complied without a word, too overwhelmed by all that had happened in such a short amount of time to demand answers for all the questions popping into her head. The two cats disappeared from Pai's view, following the scent trail Kishu had foolishly left.

Pai released an exasperated sigh as he, too, ventured off in search of the small fox who had caused the disaster. Oddly calm, his gray paws padded out into the dim hallway. He didn't even bother to lift his nose into the air to catch Cherri's scent. It was as if he knew her already. The ten strides to a cracked door took no time at all. Pai's new cat body easily slipped through the gap and into the old room. Not much furniture greeted his eyes: just an old desk with its peeling black paint and a shabby futon standing against one wall. In the darkest corner of the room–the one nearest the boarded-up window–huddled Cherri. Her reddish-orange fur still glistened even in the small amount of light filtering into the room. Her white-tipped tail lay over her black nose, her breath warming her catlike face. Even though Pai could only see her two front paws, he knew that all of them had those black stockings–almost halfway up each of her legs.

"What are you doing?" His voice held the barest note of amusement in it. His breath caught in his throat at the guilty look in Cherri's forest-green eyes. He mentally shook himself, his gray tail swishing behind him.

"Hiding," she replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Even though she wouldn't admit it, Cherri was glad that Pai had found her. She got unsteadily to her feet, wobbling a little until Pai walked over and steadied her with his slightly-smaller body. In cat-form, Pai's head was level with her cheek. It was odd to be taller than him when usually it was the other way around. When Cherri realized she had been staring, she quickly looked away. She would have blushed if she were still human.

Pai had been watching her, amused when she had finally snapped her head away. "Don't hide," he consoled her, bringing her attention back to him. "You have to figure out how to fix this. You created the problem, now deal with it," he explained logically. Turning away from Cherri, he walked out of the room.

Cherri didn't need telling to know that she was supposed to follow. She ran full-speed out the door, making it swing open from her passage. She and Pai, together, would fix this. _Together_. Maybe instead of playing matchmaker, Cherri should start thinking about getting her own boyfriend? And Pai seemed a likely candidate . . . .

* * *

* * *

**.::Kishu & Fate::.**

Kishu's golden eyes fastened onto the steaming piece of meat resting quite vulnerably on the bus bench. From his position behind a public trashcan, Kishu got ready to pounce. The tantalizing scent of the hotdog wafted into his pale-pink nostrils, teasing him relentlessly. Almost as much as a certain _female_ with sapphire eyes and snow-white hair, er, well snow-white _fur_ did . . . .

With a sudden burst of energy, Kishu sprang forward with his powerful hind legs. His sharp teeth sank into the soft center of the hotdog, meaty juices seeping onto his tongue. Before he could so much as let his mouth water at the taste, a loud yell startled him into sudden flight. He barely dodged someone's hand as it tried to snatch his tail. A muffled growl issued from his throat, sounding much less threatening than he had intended.

"Damn cat!" the owner of the hotdog shouted after him, too slow and out of shape to match Kishu's speed. He settled for waving an angry fist in the air, face a frightening shade of red.

Amused, Kishu swiveled around to watch the human's short tirade before disappearing around the corner and into an alley. For a human city, the alleyways were surprisingly-clean. But it wasn't the tidiness of the shadowy back road that caught Kishu's attention. His golden eyes with their slit pupils looked from one side of the alley to the other, searching for the one he had left back here. "Fate-chan, nya?" he finally called out after setting his prize on a pile of discarded newspapers. A sudden weight on his back had him tumbling forward, barely missing the lunch he had brought. Years of training had him returning the favor to his attacker. The pair rolled on the ground for a couple of feet before Kishu finally got on top and pinned the other cat down. His eyes widened when he saw who it was. "What on earth do you think you are doing?" he choked out, realizing that he had finally got his wish on being "on top". Too bad they were cats . . . .

"Just having fun," Fate gasped, breathing hard. She started laughing at the strange expression Kishu suddenly got on his face. Hunger pains hit her again and she remembered where Kishu had been. "Did you get anything to eat?" she asked hopefully, blue eyes glittering up at him.

Kishu snorted at her before reluctantly stepping off her. He watched her get up slowly, recognizing the weakness coming from not eating in a while. Judging by how skinny Fate was, he wondered if it happened often. His eyes narrowed in displeasure. He sure hoped that was not the case. "Of course, I did," he answered her question with an air of arrogance. He used one black paw to point at the hotdog lying on the newspaper just a couple feet away. "Wanna share?" A cat-smile appeared on his face, pearl-white fangs peeking out from beneath his whiskers.

"Aw," Fate fake-whined, a playful smile tugging at her mouth. Kishu looked confused at first, but caught on fast. A mischievous glint shone darkly in his golden eyes. "You don't wanna be a hero and give the only food you managed to find to this gentle little girl?" She gave him a pleading look, exaggerating the tragic heroine role by flattening her ears back and lowering her tail between her legs.

"Heh. Too bad for you that I'm no hero," Kishu evaded, amused by the cute display. This was a side of Fate he hadn't seen yet. And he liked it.

Fate's silver bell chimed when she sat down then, tilting her head to the side as she thought of a new tactic. An idea popped into her head then. She smirked while, at the same time, she blushed. "Well then . . ." she started, getting up to walk towards a nervous-looking Kishu. The black cat froze when Fate rubbed up against him. The full length of her body ran right up against his as she walked past him only to circle around and do the same thing to his other side. "What about for a lady then?" she breathed silkily into his ear, her white tail twining with his black one. Her heart hammered against her ribcage at what she was doing–something that was far out of her usual meek boundaries.

"H-hardly a lady," Kishu stammered, breathing hard at the heady scent of longing clogging the air. _'Keep acting like that, Fate-chan, and you won't stay pure much longer,'_ he thought silently to himself. If he didn't have the green-black fur covering his face, he was positive that his skin would be the color of a ripe tomato. If cats could even blush, that is . . . .

A lick to his chin almost sent him off the edge. Kishu looked to his side, watching Fate give him a sly smile before she walked toward their lunch. He couldn't keep his eyes off of the white cat as she slinked over to the messy stack of papers. At her sudden voice, Kishu snapped himself out of the trance.

"You coming or not?" she asked him, sitting patiently by the hotdog. Even though she was starving, Fate hadn't touched the now-cool sausage.

Walking slowly–almost predatorily–towards her, Kishu decided he'd get some payback. "Sure," Kishu grinned impishly, his tail twitching in the air in excitement.

* * *

**.::Taruto & Kaonie::.**

"Taruto-kun?" Kaonie spoke, finally getting tired of the circles they had been traveling in. Obviously, Taruto wasn't much of a tracker. "It's been a full hour already. We would have found them by now if they had stayed in the park," she explained logically to the young light-brown cat sniffing the ground in front of her. Kaonie automatically flinched when Taruto suddenly sneezed.

Taruto turned to look at her, sniveling as if he had a cold. The three metal bands on his right front paw clanked together as he shook his head to rid his nose of the dirt he had inhaled. "Then how 'bout helping?" he instructed her harshly, glaring at Kaonie. Guilt started to creep into his conscience at the ashamed expression that Kaonie adopted. "Maybe we'd cover more ground if we split up," Taruto proposed. At the girl's hesitant nod, he headed off to the right, leaving her behind. All he wanted at that moment was to get out of there as fast as possible. Ever since he had discovered feelings for Pudding, the young alien had felt empathic towards humankind in all sorts of ways. Pudding probably wouldn't be too happy with him about his rudeness toward another human, so he had tried his hardest to avoid doing just that. Sometimes he couldn't help his old self from coming up every now and then, though. How could he feel sympathetic towards a race that didn't even realize that they were slowly suffocating the Earth? The very same Earth that had once been home to his ancestors? And the one world–at least, he hoped–would soon become his new home.

"Oh, hey there, Kitty," a familiar voice broke through his musings. Shock and embarrassment had him craning his head back to stare up into the smiling face of Pudding.

_'Oh, no! Why did _she_ have to find me?'_ he thought to himself in frustration. His ears flattened against his skull, and he even had his tail between his legs.

"No collar, na no da," Pudding continued, ignoring the sudden attitude change. She reached down and picked the brown-furred cat up. Taruto was too shocked to run or even struggle in her arms. Not that he really _wanted _to. Warmth seeped into him from her close proximity, making him aware of how cold he had been earlier. Strange, he didn't remember getting sick this easily . . . .

The walk to Pudding's house didn't last very long. For Taruto, it passed by too quickly. He soon found himself standing on the Phon's island counter in the kitchen. The cold linoleum was discomforting to the underdeveloped pads on his paws. Geez, he hated being so young. Why couldn't he be grown up already?

"Here you go," his reason voiced behind him. Pudding set down a small bowl of tuna in front of him. "Eat up, na no da!" she ordered him cheerily, pulling up a stool to sit in front of him. Taruto watched as she crossed her arms on the counter before resting her head atop them. Then she stared at him. And stared . . . . And stared . . . .

_'What is she waiting for?'_ he asked himself, cocking his head curiously like any cat would. Shaking off the uncomfortable silence that had fallen, Taruto bent his head down to sniff at the raw fish sitting in front of him. Normally, he probably would have gagged at the awful stench. However, his cat genes seemed to be taking effect. The smell was intoxicating, overpowering all his other senses. He immediately dove for the fish, wolfing it down as quickly as he could without choking on it. As he licked his lips in silent satisfaction afterwards, Taruto heard bell-like laughter. Looking up, he noticed that it had been Pudding's laughter.

Pudding wiped the tears from her eyes that her laughing had created. "You're just like Taruto-kun," she informed him, smiling brightly. Her eyes began to sparkle as she continued to tell him about . . . well, _him_. Taruto would have blushed if he could. Especially when Pudding started telling him about his stubborn streak . . . .

* * *

**.::With The Mewmews::.**

Invisible dust kicked up into the air as Ichigo mindlessly swept her broom across the polished floors of Café Mew Mew. Her chocolate-brown eyes stared out the window, unseeing as she thought about her most-recent experience with Aoyama-kun. A sigh escaped her and she turned her doleful gaze to the floor. She wished that her cat ears and tail hadn't popped out then–the exact moment they were going to kiss! _'Of course . . . it wasn't as if I could actually kiss anyone without turning into a cat . . . .'_ Ichigo thought in displeasure, a red tic appearing on her temple.

"Ichigo!" Ryo repeated her name for the millionth time, interrupting her thoughts. "You need to get your head out of the clouds," he mused as Ichigo finally looked up at him attentively. His slender fingers ran through his blond hair as he pondered how to go about what needed to be done. Oh well, best to get it over with as soon as possible.

"What is it, Ryo?" Ichigo began but got cut off by someone's lips pressing against her mouth. Shock widened her brown eyes before her body started glowing. She closed her eyes tightly, feeling Ryo end the kiss as quickly as he had started.

"Come on, Ichigo," Ryo's irritated voice entered her ears. Ichigo slit open her eyes only to see the cat known as "Aruto" standing in front of her. Blue eyes stared at her from a gray-furred face; a green bandana tied around the small cat's neck. Knowing what had happened before she even had the chance to peek down at her own transformed cat body, Ichigo felt a rush of anger swell within her chest.

"Why'd you do that, Ryo?!" Ichigo demanded in an agitated voice, pink eyes glaring at the gray cat. The golden bell hanging from the red ribbon at her neck jingled as she pounced in front of her "boss" when he started walking away. Her black fur stood straight up on her arched back, even her tail was all bushy as Ichigo let her fury get the best of her. "Answer me!"

Ryo just snorted at the pissed-off cat fuming in front of him. "We need to find Cherri and Kaonie," he explained calmly, ignoring the incredulous look the cat mew mew gave him. "According to Keiichiro, Cherri's vitals spiked suddenly. We think she's transformed into a cat. Kaonie was with her so we believe she's one, too." Stepping past Ichigo, Ryo started heading towards the door. "It wasn't as if you were doing much anyway," he mumbled just loud enough for Ichigo to hear. He smirked as the girl started shrieking at his retreating back.

"Hold on!" Ichigo shouted at him after wearing herself out with all the badmouthing she was doing at his inconsiderate remark. When she finally caught up with him at the sidewalk just outside of the cake shop, Ichigo was already breathing hard.

"You really need to exercise more," Ryo mocked, cutting his eyes at her. Ichigo ignored him.

"How do you know Cherri and Kaonie are cats?" she asked him, glancing over at the gray cat curiously.

A simple growl from Ryo closed the matter. Ichigo jumped at the unexpected threat, even slowing down to walk behind him to avoid stepping into his path. She wondered for awhile what had happened to make Ryo so upset. _'I wonder if Cherri did something?' _Ichigo wondered vaguely to herself. After spending some time with the new fox mew mew, it wouldn't surprise her to find out that Cherri had pulled some sort of trick on the blond. Those two didn't exactly see eye-to-eye, after all. In fact, all of the mews (including Mathew) could tell that Ryo and Cherri absolutely _hated_ each other.

As if reading her thoughts, Ryo glanced back at her suspiciously. He shook his head roughly, trying to rid himself of any such skepticism. It wouldn't do for him to be so scatter-brained on this mission. He needed all his wits about him if he and Ichigo were going to find the two missing girls.

"Let's hurry," Ryo bit out before hitting the pavement in a full-out run.

Ichigo struggled to keep up with him but soon fell behind. Unable to cry out due to lack of breath, Ichigo quickly became lost. She slowed to a stop somewhere near the park. Looking around with searching pink eyes, the black cat realized that she stood on the same road that ran by Aoyama-kun's house. She froze at that realization. Forgetting her and Ryo's "mission" for a moment, Ichigo automatically headed towards Aoyama's house. She still remembered how to get there from the first time she had transformed into a feline. A hammering started up in her chest. It took a minute for Ichigo to realize that it was her heart pounding so hard that it felt like it was going to leap out of her throat.

"Hey, it's you again," a familiar voice registered in her cat ears.

Ichigo, shocked into a dead stop, swung her head back to stare into the familiar brown eyes of Masaya Aoyama. About to burst with giddiness, Ichigo leapt straight from the pavement and into Aoyama's outstretched arms. Since she was a cat, Ichigo didn't have to either worry or care about being embarrassed. All she desired was to be close to her Aoyama-kun . . . .

* * *

**.::with Kaonie::.**

Kaonie was walking in circles. The pavement started to hurt her tender pads. With a strangled yelp, she side-stepped a couple of girls out on their afternoon jog. She slinked over to the more-comfortable grass, grumbling to herself about how people never seemed to notice where they were going these days.

"Kaonie?" a male's voice issued from somewhere to her left. Thinking it was Taruto, the tan-furred cat jumped to attention. She pretended to be sniffing the bench as if searching for Kishu's and Fate's scents like she was supposed to be doing. However, she had no idea what she was doing . . . .

"What are you doing?" the voice continued, this time with amusement coloring it. Kaonie finally looked up from her "work" and her violet eyes widened at what she saw.

"Wh-who are you? How do you know my name?" Kaonie asked the strange gray cat. His voice was familiar, but she couldn't place it. The beautiful blue eyes winking out at her aroused a stirring of recent memories, as well. Still, Kaonie knew that she hadn't ever met this cat before. For one reason, well, he was a cat. That was it. How could she _know_ a cat?

The male cat laughed good-naturedly at the questions, cerulean eyes sparkling. Deciding to play with her for a bit, Ryo gave her his alias instead. "The name's Aruto." The green grass bent beneath his paws as he walked towards Kaonie. "Someone was looking for you. I recognize you by your eyes," he explained carelessly. It was true. Besides her unique scent of lavender and vanilla, Ryo could pick her out of a line-up based solely on Kaonie's expressive amethyst-colored eyes. "Come with me," he continued, dashing past the female quickly. All work and no play was Ryo's motto. No matter how much he wanted to stay a cat for a while simply to horse around with Kaonie, Ryo had a job to do. He had to get Kaonie back to Café Mew Mew as soon as possible.

"Wait! Where are we going?!" Kaonie called after him, unknowingly repeating what Ichigo had said earlier. She followed him anyway, millions of questions bubbling to her lips. Her ear twitched in slight irritation as she peeked at Aruto from the corners of her eyes. Not watching where she was going, Kaonie didn't see the telephone pole until she ran face-first into it. She yelped at the unexpected pain, stumbling back only to roll precariously into the dirt. A stifled chuckle sounded from above her. Her dazed violet eyes peeked up to see Aruto standing over her with a wide grin on his face. Embarrassment scorched her insides. She tried to get to her feet, but immediately lurched forward as dizziness overwhelmed her.

"I didn't expect I'd have to warn you about the pole," Aruto/Ryo mused, trying futilely to conceal his amusement in his voice. At least, he managed to keep the laughter at bay.

Kaonie rubbed the end of her nose, trying to massage the sting from it. A pitiful whine came from her as her ministrations simply made things worse. She squeezed her eyes shut both out of the unbearable humiliation and the terrible throbbing in her face. What she didn't expect was a light touch alighting on the bridge of her nose. Her violet eyes snapped open only to see a totally bewildering sight. A familiar blue-eyed blond filled her vision. She could feel something warm and moist pressed against her lips. When she realized what was happening, Kaonie fell into darkness. The last thing she remembered seeing was Ryo's cerulean eyes widening as the now-human girl fell unconscious.

* * *

**.::Cherri & Pai::.**

"Oh, man . . ." Cherri laughed humorlessly, a sweatdrop running down the back of her fox head. She jumped as Pai's shoulder bumped hers as he walked up next to her to stare at what she had pulled up on his computer screen. Carefully watching his composed expression transform into one of complete incredulity, Cherri felt her cheeks flush with embarrassment. She was just glad that she had fur covering her blush so that Pai couldn't see her mortification.

"So," Pai started weakly. He stopped to clear his throat before continuing on. "So we need to . . . have this particular physical contact in order to return to our original forms?" he asked cautiously. He carefully kept his eyes averted from Cherri's searching gaze. His long gray tail twitched nervously as if experiencing his emotions for him.

Cherri shook her head, then, realizing that Pai couldn't see the nod, cleared her own throat. "Yeah," she croaked, also turning away from her companion. "Once we're both hu-people again," she continued, stumbling on the word "human" for a second before catching herself just in the nick of time. "When we're not cats anymore,"' she amended quickly. "We can search for the others and tell them how to return to normal. It won't be a problem for Kishu and Fate, at least," she added in an undertone but Pai heard anyway and grunted in agreement.

"Let's get this over quickly then," Pai sighed, turning to Cherri so fast that it took a few moments for her to realize that he was kissing her. At least, as much as two felines could kiss–his nose pressed lightly against hers, their mouths touching. A bewildered second later brought the two into their true bodies. Now their lips were mashed together.

Cherri gasped aloud, starting to pull back when Pai brought the kiss up a level.

Unable to restrain himself, Pai brought one hand to the back of Cherri's slender neck while the other pressed against the small of her back. He opened his mouth a bit so he could taste the sweetness of the girl's lips. It wasn't until Cherri started leaning in towards him that he realized that he had to end the delightful moment before it lead to something neither of them were ready for. Floorboards creaked just outside the door to the small room he and Cherri were in. A meaningful cough had both Cherri and Pai leaping away from each other in embarrassment. Both glanced up at the doorway.

"Getting a little cozy, aren't we?" Kishu snickered. His golden eyes winked at Pai, not missing the crimson blush staining his cheeks. The smirk on his lips widened.

"You're not a cat anymore," Cherri observed, trying to draw the alien's attention away from the scene he had walked in on. She wasn't ready to contemplate it quite yet. Sure, she liked the kiss and the passion well enough, and especially liked the one behind them. Still, it wasn't every day that you were kissed by a guy you just met . . . . _'Does this make me a slut?'_ Cherri wondered silently to herself. A grimace pulled at the corners of her slightly-swollen lips. She sure hoped not. Maybe Fate could tell her. Speaking of which . . . .

"Where's my sister?" the black-haired girl asked Kishu. Her green eyes narrowed at the nervous twitch Kishu suddenly had. His smirk faltered as he quickly averted the girl's suddenly-piercing stare.

"Um . . ." he started before sighing in defeat. Motioning with a simple inclination of his head, all eyes focused on the white bundle in his arms. "She kinda didn't turn back . . . ." A sweatdrop ran down the side of his head. Cherri stared at it for a brief moment, distracted, before breaking out in a sudden fit of laughter.

Pai and Kishu stared at her, bemused by the girl who had fallen to the floor laughing her heart out.

_'It's _not_ funny, baka!' _Fate's mind-voice boomed in Cherri's mind. Cherri cringed at the even-louder echoes. The laughter subsided, but a few giggles would slip out now and then. She had to hold a hand over her mouth to muffle them.

"Did you kiss her?" Pai asked Kishu in a serious voice, ignoring the trembling girl beside him. His violet eyes bore into Kishu as the boy answered.

"Well, obviously," Kishu replied with a snort, waving one arm in front of him to indicate his changed appearance. He had to bring his arm back quickly when Fate started to slip from his one-handed hold. "I did it three times, and she never once reverted back to her old self." A sigh of disappointment left him in a rush of air as if it had been _him _still trapped in the form of a cat and _not _his girlfriend. He felt Fate's mind grumbling obscenities at him. The repeated experiments had obviously not been too comforting on her end either. He smiled uneasily, knowing that Fate was probably grateful that she hadn't transformed back considering what he'd had in mind if she had . . . .

The floor boards creaked as Pai swiftly got to his feet. Subconsciously, he offered Cherri a hand to help her up as he thought of the reason why Fate remained a member of the feline species.

"Did you see Taruto or Kaonie?" Cherri asked Kishu distractedly, taking Pai's hand with her own smaller one. She pulled herself to her feet, having to lean on Pai's shoulder for a moment when her knees buckled. After having watched Pai suffer no side-effects of the accidental cat makeover, Cherri would bet money on the insane kiss for making her legs weak. "Well?" she turned to Kishu a little impatiently. A rosy pink color had started to flush her cheeks.

Kishu cocked his head and thought for a minute. Finally sighing, Kishu shook his head in the negative. "Nope. Haven't seen either one." Looking up, he asked, "Weren't they here with you guys? Even if it was a bit overrated for kids . . . ." he added the last sentence in an undertone, delighted when both Pai and Cherri blushed a bright crimson. He wasn't so happy, however, when Fate bit into his arm. He frowned down at the white kitten sitting oh-so-innocently against his chest.

"They went in search of you," Pai explained as he overcame his embarrassment. The garnet stone Cherri had brought with her caught his eye at that moment. He walked over to it and picked it up carefully. Behind him, both Cherri and Kishu flinched, waiting for the whiskers and tails to come back. "Looks like we'll have to return this," Pai bit out, not happy about explaining matters to the mew mews head honcho. "We'll need their help if Fate is ever going to get back into her human shape," he added to prevent Kishu from arguing. It worked, apparently. Kishu's mouth snapped shut. Instead, the green-haired alien settled on glaring at the wall opposite him.

Cherri, however, did not look appeased. "Ha. Ha. What?" Her eyes widened with increasing fear and nerves. Returning what she had practically stolen (her term being "borrowed") would not end well for her. Or for any of them, on that note. Ryo would _kill_ her. And then exterminate the Cyniclons, thinking, no doubt, that they had a hand in the theft. "How 'bout we just leave it on his doorstep? I can figure this out on my own," Cherri volunteered but knew she was going to lose the argument. Fate's angry voice kept screaming into her mental ear, refusing to remain a cat for a second longer. Besides, Kaonie and Taruto may be like her as well. What would they do if Kaonie–the new waitress at Café Mew Mew–missed her first day of work? Ryo would know something was up.

"That won't do," Pai chastised indifferently, stowing away the red jewel in his pant's pocket. One white hand reached out to Cherri, trapping her left wrist in a tight hold as Pai kept his maroon-colored eyes focused on Cherri's emerald ones. "Come along, Kishu," he ordered as he leapt backwards into the air, pulling the dazed fox mew mew into the teleportation field with him. The two disappeared from the dark room, leaving Kishu alone with Fate (still in cat form) for a moment.

_'Don't even think about it,' _Fate's irritated mind-voice warned in the Cyniclon's head when he leaned down to try for a fourth time to change her back. He sighed, giving up on the matter for the moment, at least. Hugging Fate tight to his chest, Kishu, too, took off into the air. He didn't teleport immediately, however, opting for flying part-way to the mews "secret" base (aka the cake shop). Fate's words from that first night they had met reverberated through his memories. _"He probably won't take me flying again . . . ."_ She had, of course, _thought_ this, but he had heard it as clear as a bell. Knowing that it would cheer her up a bit to feel the wind against her face and to see the world below as if it was little more than a child's toy, Kishu soared through the azure sky. He climbed so high into the clouds that he actually saw Tokyo Tower _below _him. The cool air of the space between was a welcome relief from the icy wind as Kishu finally teleported.


	10. Fun In the Sun

_Disclaimer: I do not own _Tokyo Mew Mew_. The OCs Fate, Jen, & Lock are mine. The OC Kaonie Kitari belongs to XxMichyBabyxX. The OC Mathew Kane belongs to WereMewKane._

_Crimson: **sighs** I've been slacking off lately . . . ._

_Fate: Nya! Mrrrraaar! **tries to scratch Crimson**_

_Kishu: I don't think she's happy that you left her as a cat . . . . **sweatdrops**_

_Crimson: **inside a shark cage** Really? I hadn't noticed._

_Taruto: How did I change back?_

_Crimson: **getting pushed overboard by a sadistic Fate** No! Sharks!_

_Taruto & Kishu: **sweatdrop** There's no water . . . ._

_Fate: Nya Mwrar! (Translation: READ ON!)_

* * *

**Chapter Ten–**

**Fun in the Sun**

**O.o.O.o.O.o.O.o.O**

"So . . ." Kishu drawled, speaking around the end of a reed he had clutched in his teeth. "How did we go from visiting our mortal enemies to spending the day at the beach?" Confusion creased his brow as the alien stared out over the white sand. The glare didn't bother his eyes too much. At least, no where near as badly as Fate. He glanced over at the little white cat then, a smirk forming on his pale lips. She still hadn't changed back to human form, but, thanks to Keiichiro's kindness and Cherri's dramatic begging, it shouldn't remain that way for long. According to Ryo and Pai both, the only reason she hadn't reverted back to human form on her own was because of her DNA. Apparently the combination of the Cyniclon and human genes had not boded well with the extra animal DNA.

Speaking of which, Kishu had been quite surprised to notice that both a human Kaonie and Taruto had met them at the cake shop when they had arrived a couple hours earlier. It didn't take long for him to figure out how that had managed to happen. Kaonie's amethyst eyes had kept drifting over to Ryo. Every time the blonde caught sight of the human girl staring at him, she would look away suddenly with a deep blush staining her cheeks. Taruto had basically acted the same way, only with Pudding.

_'Beats me,'_ Fate's soft voice breezed through his mind. She rested her small head back on Kishu's knee, tuckered out with all the experimenting both Keiichiro and Pai had done on her. Much to Kishu's pleasure, she had refused to let anyone but Kishu touch her. Oddly enough, Fate had trusted the smug boy more than any of the mews or aliens put together. Blue eyes glanced up at Kishu's smiling face and Fate's breath froze in her throat.

The salty breeze blew at Kishu's green hair, lifting it around his white-skinned face. His golden eyes kept glancing down at her, a fire burning in their depths every time as if he was waiting for something. It took a moment, but Fate finally came to a conclusion. He was waiting for her to change back. And–after his last little performance when they had both still been cats–she knew what he had in mind. She tore her eyes from him, embarrassment getting the better of her. Squinting her azure eyes against the white glare of the sand spread out in front of her, Fate watched the mew mews horse around in the sea foam. Her sister tackled Pai–who had previously been sitting cross-legged on a boulder, as far from the sea spray as possible–sending both of them tumbling into the water. Fate cringed as the alien nearly lost his vital hat in the fall–the one protecting his over-large ears. She looked away once more, craning her head back to Kishu's face hovering above her.

_'You should go have fun, Kishu,' _Fate told him, trying not to sound as dejected as she felt. _'It's not like it's much fun here . . . .' _she bit out, referring to the cool spot Kishu had discovered beneath the shade of some palm trees and other foliage. Anxiety ripped through her as she suddenly found herself in the air, paws dangling helplessly over Kishu's grinning face.

"Aw!" Kishu exclaimed, bringing Fate into a tight hug against his chest. His black hat slipped down his head, revealing his pale-skinned ears. He didn't seem to notice, focusing, instead, on smothering the white feline in his hold. A bright light engulfed the cat, and, a second later, Kishu found himself clutching a human Fate. Well . . . as human as a part-Cyniclon can get . . . . And not only was she human again, she was naked too . . . .

When Kishu tried to pull back, anxious to see the beautiful sight he was currently obscuring, Fate held him to her. Her shallow, nervous breathing tickled his exposed left ear. The alien tried not to shiver as the warm air moved over his sensitive skin. All he could think of was: _'Woot! Naked girl!'_

_'Guys . . . .' _Fate thought in response to Kishu's mental rant. She rolled her deep-blue eyes in exasperation as she tried to come up with a solution fast. Too late, she realized as Kishu's slender hands began to wander up the flat planes of her stomach. She could feel him burying his nose into her white hair, breathing in the fruity scent of Ichigo's strawberry shampoo (the cat mew mew had seen fit to give the cute white kitty a much-needed bath). Fate hadn't minded it too terribly much, but currently wasn't so thrilled that it had been Ichigo's shampoo that Kishu had suddenly found such an interest in. Fate sighed, trying to push the jealousy from her mind. Kishu's fingers brushed delicately against the curve of her right breast which had her biting down hard on her tongue in an effort not to moan.

"Kishu," she growled, trying to get the boy's attention. It seemed obvious to Fate that Kishu had forgotten where they were: out on a public beach. Thankfully, they were hidden within a bunch of thick brush a ways from the water and, thus, away from any curious eyes. Unfortunately, Fate didn't want this. Not yet, at least. "Stop it!" she demanded in a pitiful whine. Unable to pull away without revealing herself to the horny teenager, Fate opted for the second-best thing. She buried her face in the crook of Kishu's neck, crushing her body against him so his hand could no longer move freely between them. Breathing in his oddly-soothing fragrance, Fate forced herself to relax as she thought. No ideas came to her. No one had suspected that this would happen. She had had her clothes _on _when she had transformed, hadn't she? Maybe. She didn't really know. The second she had realized what had happened, the idea to murder her twin had popped into her head and she had taken off after the fox. But not before digging her way out of a pile of cloth . . . . Oh crap . . . .

Kishu, hearing the girl clinging to him groan in displeasure, gave in to his better judgment. There's a first for everything. He reached behind him, grabbing the bag the purple-haired girl had given him. "Here," Kishu said as he jiggled the bag to the side of Fate's face since he couldn't reach her front. He was a little put-off about that, too, by the way . . . .

"Hm?" the girl mumbled aloud. She lifted her bright-red face from her comfortable position at Kishu's neck and glanced to the side where Kishu dangled the bag by her ear. She pulled back a little in curiosity, missing the sharp intake of breath of the alien as she did so. "What's that?" she asked, cocking her head to the side out of habit. With a sudden whirl of red and black (Kishu's current color scheme), Fate soon found herself flat on her back. A heavy weight on top of her crushed her to the thin blanket Kishu had spread out for them earlier. "Kish-kun?" she addressed nervously, able to move only her fingers as she curled them around the alien's silky strands of green hair.

"Stay down," Kishu bit out. His voice sounded rough and it was mumbled from him burrowing his face into the crook of Fate's neck.

Fate shivered at the feeling of his lips moving against her white skin, but did as he said. She waited patiently for whatever had overcome Kishu to pass. As she lay beneath him–bare body concealed by his baggy human clothes–Fate preoccupied herself by playing with the ends of his emerald-colored hair. Trying to keep her attention focused on the shiny locks rather than the closeness of her _boyfriend_, Fate jumped slightly when Kishu's voice broke the concentration.

"You've no _idea_ how hard it is to _not_ look," he whined as he pulled his hidden face out from his hiding place in her neck. A bright-red blush stained his cheeks and his golden eyes focused squarely on Fate's face. An expression of intense concentration furrowed his brow, causing Fate to acquire her own scarlet coloring to her pale skin. Kishu was trying his best not to let his golden gaze travel down to her bare body . . . .

His look of concentration broke, suddenly, to be replaced by an expression of longing. "Could I look? Just this once? Pleeeeaase?" he begged with her, putting on a puppy-dog face. Fate just stared at him in amazement.

"N-no! Of course not!" Fate nearly screamed before remembering they were at a public beach. Instead, she settled for a harsh whisper, knowing that anything louder than that would draw either Pai's or Taruto's attention. And she sure as hell didn't want them to see her and Kishu's current position right now . . . .

"Aawwww," the green-haired boy whined.

Fate shook her head at him, shivering as nerves took over her. "Could I get dressed, now? Please?" she begged him, trying her best to keep calm even though a boy had just asked her if he could "take a peek".

Staring directly into her puppy-dog eyes, Kishu found that he couldn't resist giving in. He sighed, realizing that he wasn't going to push her into anything she wasn't ready for. Without a word, he got up–eyes closed–and turned his back towards her. His ears twitched at every sound she made as Fate snatched the bag the purple mew (as he calls her) had handed him. He couldn't, however, resist the urge to turn around when he heard her gasp. He stopped and stared at what lay in front of him.

Unfortunately for him, she had managed to get fully dressed. Well, as fully-dressed as a bikini can be. . . . A black top swept low over her chest and cut off about mid-stomach, looking more like a tanktop than the usual bra of the typical bikini.

****Note: This is just part of the chapter. I haven't had time to continue this story yet, but I hated the fact that I haven't updated this in so long that I couldn't help but give you guys SOMETHING to read… I will update as soon as I can but I do have a lot of things to deal with at home… Still, it will NOT be a year or something as horribly long as that. Sorry, guys^.^;; This story WILL be continued; I will NEVER discontinue any of my fanfics, 'kay? I will get the rest of this chapter done ASAP!**


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